SINGAPORE (Reuters) - London copper was little changed on Monday after a better-than-expected U.S. jobs report eased concern over growth in the world's biggest economy, and a fresh pledge by top metals consumer China to support growth also helped to support prices. A seasonally slow period for industrial demand due to summer holidays in the northern hemisphere is keeping London copper volumes in check and prices rangebound between $7,200 and $7,800, where they have been stuck since late May. Prices, however, may be jolted out of this range if China's economy, as analysts expect, picks up late in the third quarter or early in the fourth quarter and if there is no further marked deterioration the euro zone's finances. "Friday's lift came in part from the very positive payroll number, but the market also seems to be reassessing its slightly negative take on ECB (European Central Bank) policy," said senior commodities strategist Nick Trevethan of ANZ in Singapore. European shares rose to four-month highs on Friday and the euro surged as investors re-evaluated the ECB's statement after its policy meeting on Thursday, which hinted at upcoming policy steps to contain surging borrowing costs in Spain. In the United States, employers hired the most workers in five months in July, but an increase in the jobless rate to 8.3 percent kept prospects of further monetary stimulus from the Federal Reserve on the table. Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was at $7,414.50 per metric ton by 03.02 a.m. EDT, down 0.41 percent after a gain of more than 1 percent in the previous session. Copper has so far shed more than 13 percent from the year's high hit in February. The euro hit a one-month high against the dollar on Monday as traders unwound bearish bets on the single currency after stronger-than-expected U.S. jobs data last week improved investor appetites for risk. A weaker dollar makes commodities cheaper for holders of other currencies. The most-traded November copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose 0.67 percent to close at 54,460 yuan ($8,500) per metric ton. "With the Q2 2012 earnings reporting season slowly fading out, the main market movers for this and next week are likely to be macro data, most importantly the industrial production data in Europe and China," Credit Suisse said in a note Chinese industrial production for July, alongside retail sales and inflation data, is due on Thursday. CHINA EASING China's central bank pledged on Sunday to intensify fine-tuning of monetary policy in the second half of this year and to improve credit policy to bolster the real economy, echoing earlier government commitments amid an economic slowdown. China is the world's top consumer of most industrial metals, accounting for 40 percent of refined copper demand last year. "The August PMI (Purchasing Manufacturers Index), when announced, will be the real key to the state of China's manufacturing industries, as it has never been valued lower than July's PMI," RBC Capital said in a note. "If the August print is lower, that would be one thing. If the number is below 50 (indicating a contraction), we are likely to see copper prices under renewed pressure." China's August PMI figure will be released at the start of next month.

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