By Melanie Burton SHANGHAI (Reuters) - London copper eased on Thursday, but was not far off this year's peak, after data showed a rise in inflation in top copper consumer China, while investors waited for a resolution of Greece's bailout deal for further trading cues. Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange slipped by 0.42 percent to $8,544 a tonne by 0432 GMT, having gained more than one percent in the previous session. Copper hit a peak of $8,679.50 at the end of January -- the 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 0.41 percent to 61,140 yuan a tonne. "Inflation data was a little higher than expected, but it shouldn't affect China's easing policy stance. There may be some positive implications for metals if China addresses imported inflation through its exchange rate," said Singapore-based strategist Nick Trevethan of ANZ. Trevethan said investors may be buying more copper because they believe China may ease curbs on the residential housing market. But any real demand boost would be modest because the residential market made up a small part of the whole construction sector, he said. Instead, LME prices were trading ahead of fundamentals, as investors sought risky assets on prospects of an impending debt deal for Greece. "Some speculators may be bingeing on copper, on optimism about Greece. Our longer-term view is that the dollar is going to ease. If you're buying metal now, and planning on sitting on it for a while, then that may be part of a broader play on the dollar," Trevethan added. 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. In Europe, Greek political leaders failed early on Thursday to sign off on a tough reform and austerity programme. The country has two weeks to identify fiscal savings worth 300 million euros under a new bailout deal with the European Union and IMF, a senior Greek government official said on Thursday. There were signs of a nascent pick-up in China's spot copper market, with the discount on domestic copper narrowing to around 200 yuan, from between 500 to 300 yuan before the Lunar New Year break, one trader said. But signals were mixed in the futures markets, with the price differential between London and Shanghai narrowing on a cash basis, and the Shanghai futures curve suggesting nearby demand remains slack. In other metals, LME tin prices fell nearly 4 percent on profit-taking after hitting six-month peaks on Wednesday. Prices were cushioned by news that shipments out of top exporter Indonesia fell 27 percent on the year. Nickel prices also moderated from five-month highs on Thursday. A month-long rally in nickel risks running out of steam as import demand from top consumer China eases due to a well supplied market and a lack of appetite in Europe saps demand for stainless steel.

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