The three-month benchmark red metal on the London Metal Exchange (LME) fell 0.6% to $9,510 a metric ton at 1602 GMT.

Copper prices fell on Friday under pressure from a stronger dollar but remained on course for their biggest monthly gain in eight months due to tighter nearby supply, highlighted by the premium of nearby copper contracts to those further out.

* Benchmark three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) fell 0.6% to $9,510 a metric ton by 1602 GMT. The contract has gained 4.2% so far in May, on track for its best month since September.

* The monthly price gains are supported by a decline in stocks in LME-registered warehouses, down 45% since mid-February to 149,875 tonnes, a near-one-year low. Copper inventories in warehouses monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose 7.2% this week.

* As Washington continues to consider whether to impose new tariffs on U.S. copper imports, the premium for Comex copper to the LME benchmark remains elevated, attracting more metal to Comex-owned warehouses.

* "LME copper is facing a bit of a squeeze as Comex stocks continue to rise and LME stocks are falling," said Dan Smith, managing director of Commodity Market Analytics.

* As a group, industrial metals remain under pressure amid a strengthening dollar, while market optimism faded following a court ruling reinstating sweeping tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump.

* China's futures markets will be closed until June 3 for the Dragon Boat holiday, reducing overall trading volumes.

* In other base metals, LME aluminum and lead fell 0.2% to $2,444 a tonne and $1,958, respectively. Zinc fell 1.5% to $2,634.50; tin lost 3.5% to $30,150; and nickel lost 0.5% to $15,295.