Aug 1 (Reuters) - Copper prices rose on Monday as falling inventories in top consumer China lent support, while disappointing factory data pointed to a weak demand outlook.

The most-traded September copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose 2% to 60,840 yuan ($9,010.40) a tonne, while three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) was almost flat at $7,914.50 a tonne by 0726 GMT.

Yangshan copper premium rose to $94 a tonne, highest since December 2021, indicating rising demand to import the metal into China.

The LME copper cash premium over the three-month contract was at $13.80 a tonne, highest since May 23.

"This resilience in prices and strengthening premium could be linked to drawing inventories and falling margins for smelters due to drop in by-product prices," ANZ analyst Soni Kumari said.

"There have also been some restocking from end-users at lower price levels," she said, adding that the move by Chinese authorities to support the property sector should see demand improving later this quarter.

ShFE copper inventories dropped to 37,025 tonnes, lowest since Jan. 21, and a 78% drop from March.

Elsewhere, miners reported falling output.

Leading producer Codelco's output in January-June dropped 7.5% year-on-year to 736,000 tonnes of copper, while Glencore cut its full-year copper outlook.

But weak metals demand outlook continued to weigh on prices, with China's factories reporting subdued activity in July as persistent demand weakness and COVID-19 outbreaks threw its manufacturing sector back into uncertainty.

LME aluminium declined 1% to $2,462.50 a tonne, zinc shed 0.3% to $3,299 a tonne and lead advanced 0.5% to $2,044.50 a tonne.

ShFE aluminium fell 2.5% to 18,205 yuan a tonne. Nickel jumped 6.8% to 180,390 yuan a tonne and tin rose 4.4% to 200,460 yuan a tonne.

For the top stories in metals and other news, click or ($1 = 6.7522 yuan) (Reporting by Mai Nguyen in Hanoi; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu and Shounak Dasgupta)