Updates prices

June 28 (Reuters) -Copper prices in London firmed on Friday, but were on track for their first monthly decline since February amid patchy economic growth in top consumer China and higher inventories.

Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange CMCU3 was up 1% at $9,608 per metric ton, as of 0711 GMT. The contract has fallen 4.4% in June and is set for a sixth straight weekly loss, if current trend holds.

After advancing to a record high of $11,104.50 on May 20, copper prices have fallen 14%, partly on sluggish economic data from China and uncertainty over U.S. interest rates.

"Markets have shifted their view to the reality of the fundamentals, and the reality is that demand is weak, especially in China. Meanwhile, if we look to ex-China, the health of manufacturing remains clouded, U.S. is performing better, but Europe remains in manufacturing recession," said StoneX analyst Natalie Scott-Gray.

"I think we will see copper average around $9,500 per ton for the year, but prices will likely go above $10,500 by the year-end, when I suspect we have the first U.S. rate cut."

Copper inventories CU-STX-SGH in warehouses monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange were at 322,910 tons last week, compared with about 30,000 tons in January, reflecting the abundant supply in China.

The most-traded August copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange SCFcv1 rose 0.6% to 78,370 yuan ($10,784.07), but was set to post its worst month since July 2022.

In the broader market, the dollar was headed for a monthly gain, making the greenback-priced metals more expensive to holders of other currencies. USD/

LME aluminium CMAL3 gained 1% to $2,516.50 a ton, nickel CMNI3 edged 0.8% higher to $17,240, zinc CMZN3 rose 1.9% to $2,985, lead CMPB3 advanced 1.2% to $2,207, and tin CMSN3 climbed 2.4% to $32,960.

SHFE aluminium SAFcv1 rose 0.3% to 20,320 yuan a ton, nickel SNIcv1 eased 0.2% to 134,760 yuan, lead SPBcv1 was up 0.9% at 19,440 yuan, while zinc SZNcv1 advanced 1.9% to 24,665 yuan and tin SSNcv1 firmed 2.9% at 274,340 yuan.

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($1 = 7.2672 Chinese yuan)

Reporting by Ashitha Shivaprasad in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips

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