LONDON- Zinc rose on Tuesday on a weaker dollar but a lack of resolution in the trade dispute between the United States and China kept prices for the metal near their lowest since January.

The trade war showed no signs of slowing down as China on Tuesday warned its companies operating in the United States they could face harassment from U.S. law enforcement agencies. 

It also rebuffed U.S. criticism of a trade white paper as "singing the same old tune".

"There are fears that the U.S-China trade war will dampen the global economy and that it might fall into recession," said Commerzbank analyst Daniel Briesemann.

"It's more to these macro factors at play even if fundamentals may be pointing to higher prices."

Benchmark zinc on the London Metal Exchange was up 0.9% at $2,492 per tonne by 1050 GMT, after touching a Jan. 14 low of $2,448.

DOLLAR: The U.S. dollar fell to a three-week low as rising bets on an interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve weighed on Treasury yields, while broader concerns about global growth sent investors buying into the safe-haven yen. 

Market jitters have also kept copper, seen by investors as a gauge of economic health, near five-month lows touched on Monday. On Tuesday, LME copper was flat at $5,845 per tonne.

INVENTORIES: Zinc stocks registered with the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SfHE) rose 5.4% to 59,351 tonnes, according to a weekly tally on Friday.

But inventories are still down 54% from a 2019 high of 124,038 tonnes in March.

Stocks in LME-monitored warehouses sit at 100,375 tonnes, and are down about 22% so far this year. 

SPREADS: The tightness in the LME market has kept cash zinc at around a premium of around $140 over the three-month contract. 

"Unless there are significant gains in stocks, this is likely to provide support to prices," said ING in a note.

TREATMENT CHARGES: Fees paid by producers to smelters in China to process concentrate into metal, or treatment charges, have more than tripled over the past eight months on expectations for higher mine supply. 

BALANCE: The global zinc market saw a deficit of 15,000 tonnes in the first quarter compared to a surplus of 37,000 tonnes the same time last year, data from the International Lead and Zinc Study Group showed. 

TIN: LME tin stockpiles rose to their highest since November as of Monday at 3,185 tonnes, helping keep tin prices at a December low. It eased 0.4% to $19,075 a tonne.

ALUMINIUM: Top aluminium producers have offered Japanese buyers premiums of $115-$120 a tonne for July-September primary metal shipments, up 10%-14% from the current quarter, amid tighter supply, sources told Reuters on Monday. 

PRICES: Aluminium gained 0.2% to $1,779.50 per tonne, lead jumped 1.6% to $1,838, tin slipped 1.4% to $18,875 and nickel fell 0.3% to $11,845.

(Additional reporting by Mai Nguyen; Editing by Susan Fenton) ((zandi.shabalala@tr.com; +44 207 542 5937; Reuters Messaging: zandi.shabalala.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))