Copper Steady after China Data; Markets Eye Greece

SHANGHAI, Feb 9 (Reuters) - London copper was steady on Thursday, holding near this year's peak, after a slight uptick in inflation from top copper consumer China, while investors waited for a resolution on Greece's bailout deal for further trading cues.   
       
Fundamentals
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange eased 0.2 percent to $8,560 a tonne by 0146 GMT, having gained more than a percent in the previous session. Copper hit a peak of $8,679.50 at the end of January -- highest since September -- and has climbed more than 12 percent so far this year.   

The most-traded April copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange fell 0.50 percent to 61,080 yuan a tonne.   

Greek political leaders failed early on Thursday to sign off on a tough reform and austerity programme, the price of a new international bailout for the nation, but Prime Minister Lucas Papademos said they would try to strike a deal within hours.    

China's annual inflation rate accelerated to 4.5 percent in January versus 4.1 percent in December, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Thursday, well ahead of market forecasts.

Demand for U.S. and Canadian aluminum products, measured as shipments from domestic producers plus imports, fell 0.4 percent in November 2011 versus November 2010, and slipped 8 percent from October, according to an aluminum industry group's latest report. 
   
Financial haven Switzerland risks a fresh hit to its reputation from the proposed mega-merger between opaque commodities giants Glencore and Xstrata, left wing groups warned.    
      
Markets News  
The euro dipped in early Asian trade on Thursday after Greek political parties concluded marathon negotiations with the issue of pension cuts left unresolved, though hopes that a deal will soon be reached limited the damage.    

Shares and the euro struggled on Thursday, as sentiment grew cautious after Greek political leaders said talks would continue to resolve one remaining issue standing in the way of a deal on a bailout package, which is crucial to avoiding a debt default.    
        
    DATA/EVENTS   
    0930 - UK Industrial Output for December     
    1200 - Bank Of England Rate Decision      
    1245 - European Central Bank Rate Decision     
    1330 - European Central Bank News Conference     
    1330 - U.S. Weekly Jobless Claims     
    1500 - Wholesale Inventories For December    
   PRICES       
                                                             
  Base metals prices at 0146 GMT
  Metal              Last       Change   Pct Move YTD pct chg
  LME Cu            8560.00    -20.00     -0.23     12.63
  SHFE CU FUT APR2    61080      -310     -0.50     10.33
  HG COPPER MAR2     389.10     -1.85     -0.47     13.24
  LME Alum          2258.75      5.75     +0.26     11.82
  SHFE AL FUT MAY2    16305       -50     -0.31      2.90
  LME Zinc          2119.25      4.25     +0.20     14.86
  SHFE ZN FUT APR2    16175       -95     -0.58      9.33
  LME Nickel       21580.00     80.00     +0.37     15.34
  LME Lead          2189.00      8.00     +0.37      7.57
  SHFE PB FUT      16170.00    -70.00     -0.43      5.79
  LME Tin          25395.00     -5.00     -0.02     32.27
  LME/Shanghai arb^    1992
 
   Shanghai and COMEX contracts show most active months