(Reuters) - Copper fell on Friday, weighed down by a stronger dollar, major metals consumer China's warning against relaxing curbs on speculation driving growth in the copper-hungry property sector and data underscoring a fragile U.S. economic recovery. Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was $7,632 per tonne in official rings from a close of $7,735 on Thursday, when it touched a two-week high of $7,813. It is on track to post a 1.3 percent fall this week after rising 2.2 percent last week. "This is exactly what we can expect as long as the only momentum is short covering," Barclays Capital analyst Gayle Berry said of the metal's range-bound see-saw. "At some point we will get a trigger that's going to break prices out of these ranges. But because it's not obvious in what direction that trigger will take us it's very risky to take a directional position. Until we get a clear macro picture people are going to keep positions very light." The euro hit a session low against the U.S. dollar after Spain's Valencia region said it would seek central government help to repay its debts. A stronger dollar makes commodities priced in the unit more expensive for holders of other currencies. Copper, used extensively in construction and seen as a bellwether for the health of the global economy, has remained in a range between around $7,500 and $7,700 per tonne in the past month. Beijing issued a reminder to local governments to keep clamping down on property speculation, underlining official concerns about renewed inflationary pressures even as China's broader economy slows. "The government's latest comments on property purchase curbs dashed the hopes of those who were looking for a reversal on current restrictions," said CIFO Futures analyst Zhou Jie. China is the world's second biggest economy, using the most copper, aluminum, iron ore, steel and coal and the second-largest consumer of oil. But after almost a decade of growing at about 10 percent a year, the economy is slowing. Looking forward, many investors are betting on new Chinese stimulus measures this weekend after Premier Wen Jiabao said Beijing needed to step up efforts to create jobs. But worries over a slowdown in the U.S. economy rose after data showed factory activity in the Mid-Atlantic region contracted in July for a third straight month and that new claims for jobless aid surged last week. GUARD From a technicals perspective, after copper failed to guard its position above the $7,800 resistance level, it fell back to its previous range of $7,600 to $7,800, Zhou said. "Today's movements reflect this," he added. Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao expects LME copper to retrace to $7,697 per tonne due to a resistance zone of $7,823-$7,839. "We still think risk is to the upside given the general short commitment in the market and what is going on with the spreads as we head into the weekend, but the currency influence will obviously be seen as well," RBC Capital Markets said in a research note. On the fundamental side, around 500 contract workers at three of world No. 1 copper producer Codelco's massive northern deposits will strike on Friday, the national federation of contract workers said, but Codelco said the unrest will not affect output. "This won't have any effect," a Codelco spokesman told Reuters on Thursday. "We're taking measures to replace them without any difficulty." Daily average primary aluminum output in June dropped to 67,700 tonnes compared with 67,900 in May and 70,000 in June 2011, figures from the International Aluminium Institute (IAI) showed on Friday. Including China, June's average output was 123.8 million tonnes, up from a revised figure of 122.1 million tonnes in May. Three-month LME aluminum was $1,913 a tonne in official rings from $1,944. In other metals, tin, untraded in rings, was bid at $18,995 from $19,095 while zinc, used in galvanizing, was at $1,855 in rings from $1,887 at Thursday's close. Battery material lead was $1,905 from $1,929.5 and nickel was $15,900 from $16,050. (Editing by Anthony Barker)

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