Aluminium Slips as Investors Weigh Oil-led Inflation Concerns, Supply Fears

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 SAFcv1 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 CMAL3 dipped 0.09% to $3,513.50 a ton and was set to end the week up by 2%.

The Middle East war has disrupted shipment 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 NHY.OL 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 LCOc1 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 MALSTX-TOTAL on Monday.

Elsewhere on SHFE, copper SCFcv1 dropped 0.31%, zinc SZNcv1 shed 0.41%, lead SPBcv1 declined 0.45%, tin SSNcv1 lost 1.29% and nickel SNIcv1 added 0.11%.

Among other LME metals, copper CMCU3 eased 0.53%, lead CMPB3 dropped 0.34%, nickel CMNI3 lost 0.88%, tin CMSN3 declined 0.58% and zinc CMZN3 was little changed.