March 13 (Reuters) - Aluminium eased on Friday as rising

oil prices remained a focus and continued to fuel inflation

concerns, although the metal was headed for weekly gains amid

supply risks linked to the ongoing Middle East war.

The most-active aluminium contract on the Shanghai Futures

Exchange was down 0.26% at 25,250 yuan ($3,667.13) a

metric ton as of 0250 GMT, but was on course for a near 3%

weekly gain.

The benchmark three-month aluminium contract on the London

Metal Exchange dipped 0.09% to $3,513.50 a ton and was

set to end the week up by 2%.

The Middle East war has disruptedshipment and delivery of

aluminium and raw materials to and from the region that accounts

for around 9% of the world's aluminium output.

Norsk Hydro ( NHYKF ) said on Thursday that its Qatalum

aluminium smelter in Qatar halted a curtailment announced last

week and would keep production at around 60% of its capacity,

easing some supply worries.

However, the oil price surge has stoked fears of higher

inflation, pressuring base metals including aluminium and

capping gains driven by supply risks from the Middle East,

traders said.

Iran's new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei vowed to keep the

Strait of Hormuz shut, heightening worries about a prolonged

conflict.

Brent futures are hovering around $100 a barrel,

slightly easing from Thursday. Higher energy costs have prompted

investors to scale back bets of U.S. rate cuts this year.

Meanwhile, trading houses have stepped up activity amid

expectations of an aluminium deficit that has recently been

worsened by the Middle East war. Commodity trader IXM is

weighing a restart of aluminium trading, Reuters reported on

Thursday, and Mercuria cancelled nearly 100,000 tons of

aluminium in LME-approved warehouses in Malaysia on Monday.

Elsewhere on SHFE, copper dropped 0.31%, zinc

shed 0.41%, lead declined 0.45%, tin

lost 1.29% and nickel added 0.11%.

Among other LME metals, copper eased 0.53%, lead

dropped 0.34%, nickel lost 0.88%, tin

declined 0.58% and zinc was little changed.

Friday, March 13

DATA/EVENTS

0700 UK GDP Est 3M/3M Jan

0700 UK GDP Estimate MM, YY Jan

0700 UK Services MM, YY Jan

0700 UK Manufacturing Output MM Jan

0745 France CPI (EU Norm) Final MM, YY Feb

0745 France CPI YY, MM, NSA Feb

1230 US Consumption, Adjusted MM Jan

1230 US Core PCE Price Index MM, YY Jan

1230 US PCE Price Index MM, YY Jan

1230 US Durable Goods Jan

1230 US GDP 2nd Estimate Q4

1400 US U Mich Sentiment Prelim Mar

($1 = 6.8855 Chinese yuan renminbi)