SHANGHAI, Nov. 14 (SMM) -- LME nickel prices were weighed below 5-day moving average after opening at USD 18,250/mt during the Asian trading hours last Friday. The concern over the European debt crisis weighed on base metal prices. Although LME nickel prices pared certain losses, overall performance of LME nickel prices were still weak.

In the Shanghai nickel spot market, trading sentiment was still sluggish. Mainstream traded prices of nickel from Jinchuan Group were in the RMB 135,000-135,500/mt ragne, and mainstream traded prices of nickel from Russia were in the RMB 132,000-132,500/mt range. LME nickel prices extended weak momentum recently, and faced risks to slip further due to concern over debt crisis in Italy. Downstream demand was soft, due to tight liquidity and unit maintenance at stainless steel mills.