* GRAPHIC-2018 asset returns: * LME/ShFE arb: (Releads, updates prices)
By Jan Harvey
LONDON, Feb 7 (Reuters) - Copper fell 2 percent on Wednesday and other base metals turned lower as U.S. stock markets resumed this week's hefty sell-off, with concerns that fundamentals do not justify current price levels also weighing on the red metal.
Copper, chiefly used in construction, has struggled to make headway this year after rallying to a near four-year high late last year on expectations that global growth would drive demand higher.
"Instead of just focusing on the global growth outlook, which is positive, you should keep an eye on what we call China's old economy - the property market, the infrastructure segment," Julius Baer analyst Carsten Menke said. "That's where we expect a slowdown sometime this year."
"China's property sector consumes more copper than the U.S. alone," he said.
Lead was the biggest faller as some holders cashed in gains after the metal rallied to a 6-1/2-year high late last week.
"Lead was the outlier last week - everything was steady, but lead was gaining a lot," Societe Generale analyst Robin Bhar said.
"If you are looking to liquidate ahead of Chinese New Year, you will liquidate where you have made a profit, and that would be ... lead."
* LME COPPER: Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was down 2 percent at $6,937 a tonne at 1501 GMT, having fallen 1.3 percent on Tuesday.
* FINANCIAL MARKETS: U.S. stocks opened lower, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average falling over 120 points as an almost 2 percent gain in the previous session failed to calm nerves following the index's biggest intraday fall on Monday. * ALUMINIUM: LME aluminium was down 0.2 percent at $2,166.50 a tonne in official trading. It earlier matched the previous session's three-week low of $2,170.
* ALUMINIUM SPREAD: The premium for cash aluminium over three-month aluminium rose to $2.75 a tonne, its highest since August, from a discount of $12.50 a tonne at the start of the year. Tightness was seen in the spread between the February and March contracts, traders said.
* LEAD PRICES: LME lead was down 2.3 percent at $2,562 a tonne, having hit its highest since July 2011 last week at $2,885.
* LEAD STOCKS: Stocks of lead held in LME-registered warehouses fell another 1,375 tonnes to their lowest since late 2015, exchange data showed.
* OTHER METALS: Zinc was down 0.8 percent at $3,428 a tonne, while nickel was 0.9 percent lower at $13,270. LME tin was flat at $21,730 a tonne.
<^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Top Base and Precious Metals Analysis - GFMS ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^>(Additional reporting by Tom Daly in Beijing; Editing by Dale Hudson)
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