MUMBAI, Feb 9 (Reuters) - India copper futures edged higher on Tuesday afternoon tracking overseas leads, but a strong rupee kept a lid on gains, analysts said. The most-traded copper February contract MCCG0 on the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) was 0.63 percent higher at 302.80 rupees per kg at 3:10 p.m. Buying is recommended at 302/302.50 rupees in copper, with a target of 305/308, maintaining a stop loss of below 300, said Pranav Mer, senior analyst, Mangal Keshav Commodities. London copper, which guides the domestic markets, rose in reaction to the dollar's fall against the euro, but gains are expected to be capped by persistent worries about sovereign default in the euro zone. [MET/L] The Indian rupee strengthened from a seven-week trough reached in the previous session, as broadly higher Asian peers lifted sentiment despite early losses in the domestic sharemarket. [INR/] A strong rupee makes the dollar-quoted asset cheaper. "Copper can go up to 308/315 in the short-term on technical bounce due to oversold conditions," said Praveen Singh, an analyst with Sharekhan Commodities. Copper stocks in the warehouses monitored by the London Metal Exchange (LME) was down 50 tonnes at 541,050 tonnes on Tuesday. In other base metals, February zinc MZIG0 was trading 0.69 percent higher at 95.10 rupees per kg, while lead for February delivery MLDG0 was trading 0.76 percent higher at 92.90 rupees per kg. Nickel for February delivery MNKG0 was 0.46 percent higher at 813.10 rupees per kg. "Nickel will witness some short-covering and may move towards 826/830 rupee," said Mer. (Reporting by Siddesh Mayenkar; Editing by Prem Udayabhanu)

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