BEIJING, March 1 (Reuters) - Nickel prices in London retreated on Friday, after hitting a more than two-month high in the previous session, as easing supply concerns over the output by top producer Indonesia weighed on sentiment.
Three-month nickel on the London Metal Exchange slid 0.6% to $17,785 per metric ton by 0145 GMT. The contract gained 10% last month, the first monthly rise since July.
The most-traded May nickel contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange added 0.6% to 137,710 yuan ($19,142.34) per ton.
Indonesian miners and smelters are still making good margins despite the price drop linked to higher nickel processing, and will benefit further from the shift as lower prices support the country's battery industry, a senior official said on Thursday.
The remark came with some investors' bet that a slide in the market had hit a floor, one driver behind previous price rally.
Prices of the metal used in stainless steel and battery lost over 40% last year with rising output from the Southeast Asian nation.
LME copper dipped 0.2% to $8,477.50 a ton, aluminium shed 0.4% to $2,218.50, zinc edged lower 0.2% at $2,422, tin dipped 0.1% to $26,535 while lead gained 0.2% to $2,063.50.
SHFE copper edged 0.2% higher at 68,940 yuan a ton, zinc increased 0.2% to 20,590 yuan, aluminium rose 0.6% to 18,960 yuan, lead was 0.2% higher at 15,975 yuan and tin increased 0.1% to 218,450 yuan.
For the top stories in metals and other news, click or
($1 = 7.1940 Chinese yuan renminbi) (Reporting by Siyi Liu and Andrew Hayley; Editing by Rashmi Aich)
