(Adds pollution alert, analyst comment; updates prices)
BEIJING, Jan 19 (Reuters) - Shanghai aluminium prices rose on Friday, buoyed by the first acceleration in China's GDP growth in seven years and by a pollution alert in a major industrial province.
The climb came even as the country's output of the metal on Thursday posted a surprise jump for December.
"GDP, industrial production and fixed asset investment all recorded strong growth," ANZ wrote in a note on Friday about the China data. "The (metals) sector was also supported by some supply-side issues."
Late on Thursday, the city of Zhengzhou, capital of the key aluminium-smelting province of Henan, raised its alert for air pollution to red, the highest level, effective from Friday. That means tighter curbs on output of industrial products, including metals.
Heavy pollution in the Zhengzhou is expected to last until Jan. 23, according to state news agency Xinhua.
FUNDAMENTALS
- SHFE ALUMINIUM: The most-traded aluminium contract SAFcv1 on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (ShFE) was up 0.75 percent at 14,730 yuan ($2,304.08) a tonne at 0518 GMT. It rose more than 1 percent in early trade, but is on course for a weekly drop of 2.5 percent.
- LME ALUMINIUM: In London, three-month aluminium CMAL3 edged down 0.3 percent to $2,235 a tonne, after ending up 2.2 percent in the previous session.
- CHINA: China's economy grew faster than expected in the fourth quarter of 2017, as an export recovery helped the country post its first annual acceleration in growth in seven years, defying concerns that intensifying curbs on industry and credit would hurt expansion.
- ALUMINIUM: China's aluminium production rebounded in December to its highest since June, reversing five months of declines and lifting 2017 output to a record.
- COPPER: The most-traded March copper contract in Shanghai SCFcv1 was down 0.1 percent at 53,640 a yuan a tonne. Three-month London copper CMCU3 rose 0.3 percent to $7,095 a tonne, building on Thursday's gain of 0.6 percent, after a force majeure in Mongolia.
- MONGOLIA: The Oyu Tolgoi copper-gold mine in Mongolia's southern Gobi Desert declared force majeure after protests by Chinese coal haulers disrupted deliveries near the border, said majority owner Turquoise Hill TRQ.TO.
- LEAD: Lead SPBcv1 was the biggest gainer among base metals on the ShFE, rising 1.7 percent to 19,550 yuan a tonne after a red pollution alert in the key production hub of Jiyuan in Henan province.
- ZINC: Rising supplies of zinc over the next couple of years are unlikely to replenish dwindling inventories to the extent that the market stops fretting about shortages and driving up prices towards the peaks seen in 2007.
- NICKEL: The global nickel market deficit narrowed to 8,400 tonnes in November from 11,500 tonnes in the previous month, the International Nickel Study Group said on Thursday.
For the top stories in metals and other news, click [TOP/MTL] or [MET/L]
MARKETS NEWS
- Asia stocks edged up to record highs on Friday, although losses on Wall Street slowed the advance, while worries over a possible U.S. government shutdown weighed on the dollar.
[MKTS/GLOB]
DATA AHEAD (GMT)
0700 Germany Producer prices Dec 0900 Euro zone Current account Nov1500 U.S. Univ of Michigan sentiment index Jan PRICESBASE METALS PRICES 0518 GMT
Three month LME copper CMCU3 7095 Most active ShFE copper SCFcv1 53640 Three month LME aluminium CMAL3 2235 Most active ShFE aluminium SAFcv1 14735 Three month LME zinc CMZN3 3385.5 Most active ShFE zinc SZNcv1 25970 Three month LME lead CMPB3 2605.5 Most active ShFE lead SPBcv1 19540 Three month LME nickel CMNI3 12400 Most active ShFE nickel SNIcv1 95880 Three month LME tin CMSN3 20465 Most active ShFE tin SSNcv1 144630 BASE METALS ARBITRAGELME/SHFE COPPER LMESHFCUc3 718.46 LME/SHFE ALUMINIUM LMESHFALc3 -1876.65 LME/SHFE ZINC LMESHFZNc3 376.56 LME/SHFE LEAD LMESHFPBc3 -587.33 LME/SHFE NICKEL LMESHFNIc3 2579.19 ($1 = 6.3930 Chinese yuan renminbi)<^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Top base and precious metals analysis - GFMS http://tmsnrt.rs/2lvmIzW^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^>
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