(Updates throughout, adds LONDON dateline)
- Resumption of Indonesian exports weighs on nickel
- Expectations grow for Philippines' output to resume
- LME/ShFE arb: http://tmsnrt.rs/2oQ5nm2
Nickel slid to an 11-month low on Thursday as a resumption in exports from Indonesia and the prospect of an output recovery from the Philippines stoked worries about oversupply.
Nickel prices fell for a third straight month in May and hit their lowest since June last year on Thursday at $8,810 a tonne. They have fallen 12 percent this year, the biggest drop among the major base metals.
"We saw the nickel ore export ban lifted in Indonesia, so we've seen Antam for example start exporting nickel ore to China," ING commodity strategist Warren Patterson said. "They've received licences for 2.7 million tonnes of ore, so we've seen supply coming back there."
"The other potential big change going forward is the change in the environmental secretary in the Philippines," he added. "Market expectations are that we could see some sort of relaxation in policy, so where we saw 21 mines shut or suspended, we could see some of them coming back online."
Nickel was also caught up in broader negative sentiment after a survey showed China's manufacturing activity unexpectedly contracted in May for the first time in 11 months as demand weakened and shrinking factory prices dented profits.
- LME NICKEL: Three-month nickel CMNI3 on the London Metal Exchange was 1.7 percent lower at $8,820 at 0933 GMT.
- PHILIPPINES: President Rodrigo Duterte this month appointed a former military man as the new environment minister after Congress dismissed his first choice, who had ordered the closure of more than half of the mines in the world's top nickel ore supplier.
- INDONESIA: The relaxation in January of Indonesia's ban on exporting unprocessed nickel ore - in place since the start of 2014 - has added to concerns over rising supply.
- NICKEL STOCKS: Nickel inventories at LME warehouses MNI-STOCKS, while well below their 2015 peak, remain at elevated levels. Stocks at more than 378,000 tonnes account for almost 20 percent of global consumption, estimated at nearly 2 million tonnes this year.
- LME COPPER: Three-month LME copper CMCU3 was down 0.3 percent at $5,666.50 a tonne.
- CHINA MANUFACTURING: China's Caixin/Markit Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' index (PMI) fell to 49.6, indicating a contraction for the first time in 11 months and coming in below market expectations.
- BHP COPPER: BHP Billiton (BHP) said on Thursday it had lifted a declaration of force majeure at its Escondida copper mine in Chile.
- OTHER METALS: LME aluminium CMAL3 was down 0.4 percent at $1,920.50 a tonne, while tin CMSN3 was 0.1 percent higher at $20,350 a tonne. Zinc CMZN3 was down 1.4 percent at $2,565 a tonne, and lead CMPB3 was 0.9 percent lower at $2,102
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