* GRAPHIC-2019 asset returns:
* LME nickel stocks touch lowest since January 2013 (Adds closing prices)By Zandi ShabalalaLONDON, July 23 (Reuters) - Nickel slipped on Tuesday andanalysts said prices that were still near one-year highs for themetal used to make stainless steel were not supported by mostfundamentals.Benchmark nickel on the London Metal Exchange (LME)ended 0.9% lower at $14,170 per tonne after declining 3% in theprevious session."We are not confident that this level can be sustainedbecause the second half is going to represent changingconditions in Chinese stainless steel demand and therefore
destocking," said Macquarie analyst Vivienne Lloyd.
Speculators and physical buyers have pushed prices on theLME up 25% within two weeks.
Reuters reported Chinese firm Tsingshan Holding Group hasbeen buying large quantities of nickel on the LME to supplementits own output. STAINLESS DEMAND: Nearly 70% of global nickel consumption,estimated at 2.4 million tonnes this year, is accounted for bystainless steel mills, a majority of which are in China.
NICKEL STOCKS: Headline nickel inventories in LME-approvedwarehouses are at their lowest since January 2013 at 100,422tonnes. A single entity holds between 50% and 79% of LME nickelwarrants, exacerbating fears over short supplies. TRADE TENSIONS: China strongly opposes U.S. sanctions on aChinese energy firm accused of violating curbs on Iran's oilsector imposed over Tehran's nuclear programme, its foreignministry said. The potential standoff over the sanctions could escalatelong-standing tensions between the world's two largest economiesand further sap demand for metals.CHINA GROWTH: China's industry ministry said "arduousefforts" will be needed to achieve this year's industrial outputgrowth target, as trade protectionism weighs on exports andclouds the outlook for the world's second-largest economy. COPPER OUTPUT: For the first four months of the year, theglobal copper market was in a 155,000-tonne deficit comparedwith a 64,000-tonne deficit in the same period a year earlier,the International Copper Study Group said. ALUMINIUM: Canada's exemption from U.S. tariffs on importsof aluminium metal has boosted earnings at the Canadianoperations of companies such as Rio Tinto and Alcoa , but has not cut costs for U.S. consumers. COLUMN: Global aluminium production fell by 0.5% in thefirst half of this year, according to the InternationalAluminium Institute. ZINC TIME SPREADS: The discount of cash LME zinc to thethree-month contract touched $13 a tonne on Monday,the biggest discount since September last year, indicating ample near-term supplies.DOLLAR: Most metals were under pressure from a stronger U.S.dollar. The currency was boosted by a deal between U.S.President Donald Trump and congressional leaders on a two-yearextension of the debt limit. PRICES: Copper shed 0.8% to $5,968 per tonne,aluminium was unchanged at $1,816, zinc added0.6% to $2,432, lead ended 1.1% higher at $2,031, whiletin shed 1% to $17,675, after touching is lowest since2016. (Additional reporting by Mai Nguyen in SINGAPORE;Editing by David Evans and Edmund Blair)