MELBOURNE, Feb 6 (Reuters) - London nickel fell more than 3 percent on Tuesday, leading the base metals complex lower as "risk off" sentiment soured share markets and safe-haven buying lifted the dollar.
The dollar has risen as a rout in global equities prompted anxious investors to cut exposure to riskier assets and seek shelter in the relative safety of the greenback. A stronger
dollar makes commodities more expensive for buyers holding other currencies. But given a pick up in global manufacturing and supply
shortfalls in some metals, Citibank suggested dips offered an opportunity to buy. "The recent sell-off in rates and equities, and spike in
VIX, presents an opportunity to rotate into industrial metals," Citibank said in a report. "We recommend asset managers raise their exposure to
industrial metals over the coming month, particularly at the expense of bonds and other fixed income, consistent with... our
own constructive 1H18 outlook for industrial metals – most notably towards zinc and copper." FUNDAMENTALS: * COPPER: London Metal Exchange copper slid 1.5
percent to $7,064.50 a tonne by 0547 GMT, paring 1.8 percent gains from the previous session and still holding above the $7,000 mark that has acted as a price floor for most of the
year. Shanghai Futures Exchange copper erased overnight gains to slip 0.4 percent to 52,810 yuan ($8,405) a tonne. * NICKEL: LME nickel fell as much as 3.6 percent
earlier and was trading down 2.7 percent at $13,370 a tonne. Any break of support at Friday's low of $13,185 would take prices
back to Jan. 24 levels. Prices in January struck a 2-1/2 year top at $14,000 a tonne. Other LME metals fell 1 percent to 2 percent.
* SUPPORT: Steel-related commodities were among a handful that managed to evade the global market rout that followed Wall Street's biggest decline since 2011.
* CHINA IMPORTS: Traders noted that the import window for copper into China is open, potentially supporting prices. One saw limited inflows given traders will not want to risk holding
stock over the Lunar New Year holidays which start Feb. 15. * ALUMINIUM: Russian aluminium giant Rusal plans to boost the share of value-added products (VAP) to between 50
percent to 52 percent of total aluminium sales this year from 47 percent in 2017 because of strong demand and its new VAP capacity, it said on Monday.
* DRC: Mining companies operating in Democratic Republic of Congo are mounting a coordinated campaign against a new mining code they say will stifle investment there, Randgold's
chief executive told Reuters.
