By Stefano Rebaudo Dec 10 (Reuters) - The British pound inched up on Friday, but was still within striking distance of its 2021 low against the dollar, after the greenback pared some gains after U.S. inflation data. The dollar shed early gains and turned lower on Friday after U.S. consumer prices increased further in November as investors took profits before a Federal Reserve meeting next week. Meanwhile, investors weighed UK's pandemic curbs and weak economic data, which dampened expectations that the Bank of England would raise interest rates soon.