(Recasts, updates prices)By Eric OnstadLONDON, Oct 15 (Reuters) - Copper prices rebounded onThursday as strong demand in top consumer China overcameconcerns that rising COVID-19 cases around the world will dampenglobal growth.Global stocks and oil prices pared losses after earliersliding due to worries about governments across Europetightening restrictions to battle accelerating virus infections. Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange hadgained 0.7% to $6,763.50 a tonne by 1615 GMT, bouncing afterearlier sinking as low as $6,668. It has rebounded by about 50%since touching 45-month lows in March.LME copper hit its highest in more than two years on Sept.21, and prices have since hovered between $6,300 and $6,900 atonne."For copper, the fundamentals have been quite resilient,primarily due to China's recovery, and supply has been a bittighter as well," said Xiao Fu, head of commodity marketstrategy at Bank of China International in London."But there's still lots of uncertainty on the macro front,including surrounding the U.S. election and concerns about therest of the world's recovery."Markets have also been pressured over a lack of progress onanother U.S. coronavirus relief package, but U.S. PresidentDonald Trump said on Thursday he was willing to raise his offerof $1.8 trillion.
* A global nickel market surplus of 117,000 tonnes isforecast for this year, with excess supply narrowing to 68,000tonnes in 2021, the International Nickel Study Group said.
* Also weighing on metals markets was a firmer dollar , which makes commodities priced in the U.S. currency moreexpensive for buyers using other currencies.
* Aurubis , Europe's biggest copper smelter, said
it would offer its customers unchanged 2021 copper premiums of$96 per tonne above LME prices.
* LME aluminium added 0.1% to $1,854 a tonne, zinc gained 0.5% to $2,430, lead fell 1.1% to$1,775.50, nickel rose 0.6% to $15,430 and tin edged up 0.3% to $18,345.
* For the top stories in metals and other news, click or (Additional reporting by Mai NguyenEditing by Pravin Char and Mark Potter)