(Reuters) - London copper rose on Thursday, snapping four sessions of losses, on encouraging manufacturing data from the United States and China and after the U.S. Federal Reserve's decision to leave its current stimulus policies unchanged. Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange had climbed 0.6 percent to $7,864.75 per metric ton (1.1023 tons) by 11.41 p.m. EDT on Wednesday, after four sessions of losses in which it had dropped nearly 5 percent. But the most active January copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange was down 0.5 percent at 57,200 yuan ($9,200) per metric ton after rising earlier. The Federal Reserve's policy-setting panel on Wednesday made no change in its plan to purchase $40 billion in mortgage-backed debt per month to push interest rates lower and spur a stronger recovery. "The continuation of QE3 would mean that the dollar will stay under pressure, which is supportive of commodities prices," said China Futures Co analyst Yang Jun. "At the same time, with a lack of clear signals of improvement in major economies, prices lack the momentum to rise too much. Without any clear drivers to push base metals up or down, trading will stay directionless and rangebound for a while." Data on Wednesday data showed conditions had improved slightly for U.S. and Chinese manufacturers, although euro zone businesses suffered another dismal month in October, suggesting the economy may be headed for a deeper recession than expected. China's Purchasing Managers Index in September pointed to the world's second-largest economy making a slow, steady recovery from its weakest period of growth in three years with new orders and output at their highest in months. But analysts noted that the headline reading of 49.1 was still below the 50-point mark that separates expansion from contraction. "The Chinese economy looks set to improve slightly in the fourth quarter, which will also lift copper demand and put a floor on base metal prices. But for demand to rise significantly, we need to see a clear and sustained improvement in China's manufacturing PMI numbers above 50," Yang said. INVENTORIES Chinese spot copper demand remained lackluster with prices still trading at a discount of up to 200 yuan to the ShFE front-month contract. Also, several traders described Chinese copper inventories as high. ShFE data on Friday showed copper stocks in warehouses it monitored had risen 8.4 percent on the week and more than 50 percent since mid-June. "We estimate that Shanghai bonded warehouse stocks are at least around 650,000 metric ton now due to sluggish demand, the arrival of term shipments over the past few months, and high output," a Shanghai-based physical trader said. Elsewhere, developments in the euro zone remain a concern for investors. Greece's finance minister said on Wednesday that his country had been given more time by its international lenders to implement austerity cuts, an assertion played down by leading European Union officials. Spain is ready to start funding itself for 2013, including the needs of its indebted regions, after having nearly completed its debt issuance plan for this year, the head of the Spanish Treasury said on Wednesday. In industry news, Sumitomo Metal Mining Co (5713.T) and Mitsui & Co (8031.T) said on Thursday that their investment in Vale's (VALE5.SA) New Caledonia nickel cobalt project will fall to a collective 14.5 percent from 21 percent on bigger-than-expected repair costs. Teck Resources Inc (TCKb.TO) said on Wednesday it will defer C$1.5 billion ($1.51 billion) in capital spending planned through 2013 and cut costs as Canada's largest diversified miner feels the pinch of a global economic slowdown.

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