Base metals prices on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were broadly lower during Asian morning trading on Friday February 15 following disappointing data out of China, with nickel leading the falls.China’s January Purchase Price Index (PPI) came in with an increase of 0.1% year on year, lower than the forecast of a 0.3% increase, and lower than previous 0.9% increase, according to China’s National Statistics Bureau. “[January’s PPI year on year increase], the seventh straight month of falling PPI points to a deeper problem of slowdown and overcapacity,” John Browning from Broker Company Bands said in his morning notes today. “The worse-than-expected PPI data fueled concerns over possible slower growth in China, offsetting the optimism surrounding SHFE base metals prices after positive trade balance data released yesterday,” a metals analyst in Shanghai said. The country’s trade surplus stood at $39.2 billion in January – surpassing the forecast figure of $33.5 billion but down from $57.1 billion in December 2018. In terms of shipments, China’s exports on a dollar-denominated basis rose by 9.1% in January from a year earlier
