Aluminium dips on producer selling

LONDON, Nov 7 (Reuters):  Aluminium dipped on Friday as producers and trade houses sold while the wider base metals complex was mixed ahead of key U.S. jobs data that could move the dollar.
Three-month aluminium on the London Metal Exchange fell 0.9 per cent to a session low of $2,056.75 a tonne, but pared losses to stand at $2,065 by 1111 GMT, a decline of 0.5 per cent.
Two-way activity was keeping aluminium in a fairly tight range, said analyst Gayle Berry at Jefferies Bache in London.
"You have seen decent trade selling when prices move higher, and then when prices pull back you see some CTA buying, which is keeping prices within a range."
Commodity trade advisers (CTAs) manage speculative investment funds, often using computer-generated buying signals.
Aluminium has been resilient during the recent commodities sell-off, on track for a 1.3 per cent weekly gain after a rise of 3.6 per cent the previous week.
Many investors expect a deficit to develop, supporting prices, on the back of strong demand and cutbacks by producers.
Copper edged down 0.2 per cent to $6,647 a tonne ahead of the U.S. labour report, which could provide fresh clues on the time scale for the raising of interest rates.
That could move the dollar, a strengthening of which tends to weigh on commodities because the dollar-priced assets become more expensive for holders of other currencies.
Copper was set to post a weekly fall of 0.7 per cent, its biggest weekly drop since early October because of the dollar's strength.
The dollar index was little changed on Friday, but close to a 4-1/2 year high after European Central Bank President Mario Draghi on Thursday renewed a pledge to take necessary steps to support the euro zone economy, pushing the euro close to two-year lows.
Despite some dollar pressure, metals are also following their own fundamentals, said Mark Keenan, a Societe Generale analyst in Singapore.
Copper prices have found support from low global stocks, though expectation of rising supply has capped gains, keeping prices in a narrow trading band.