METALS-Copper falls, rising inventories signal weak demand

* LME copper stocks at highest since May

* Fed, BOE, ECB all hold interest rates

* Aluminium inventories dip

(Recasts, updates prices, market activity to close)

By Carole Vaporean and Michael Taylor

NEW YORK/LONDON, Nov 5 (Reuters) - Copper remained lower into late trade on Thursday, hit by another jump in inventories that renewed concerns about weak demand for the red metal and whether Chinese buying will continue as prices rise.

Some analysts said copper's gains above key psychological targets worried some players that prices may have gone "too far, too fast" and used the first hint of overbought conditions as an opportunity to sell.

Copper for three-months delivery MCU3 on the London Metal Exchange ended at $6,530 a tonne from $6,570 on Wednesday. The red metal hit a session low of $6,485.

A day earlier it surpassed the $6,600 a tonne level and set a high at $6,630 a tonne. Some players read that move as renewed attempts to reach the 13-month top set last week.

In New York, copper for December delivery HGZ9 lost 3.60 cents to finish at $2.9570 a lb on the New York Mercantile Exchange's COMEX division.

Similarly, COMEX copper prices briefly rallied to levels above $3.00 a lb during the Wednesday session, prompting market talk of attempts on the $4.00 target that spurred some players to unload copper holdings, brokers said.

Copper inventories at London Metal Exchange warehouses have been rising since mid-July, and on Thursday climbed by 5,775 tonnes to 379,825 tonnes, their highest level since early May.

"People are concerned that outside of China, in the developed world, that demand may not pick up as strongly as needed," said Max Layton, an analyst at Macquarie.

"The fact that inventories are still rising despite very strong Chinese exports is suggesting that copper today is in surplus globally," he added.

Analysts said that this year copper would not retest 2009 highs above $6,700, but it could rise towards $7,000 in 2010.

The copper price has more than doubled this year, supported by hefty buying by China, the world's top consumer of the metal used in power and construction, and dollar weakness.