Nickel leads broad-based metals retreat after China data

LONDON, Nov 14 (Reuters): Nickel fell on Tuesday, leading a broad-based pullback in base metals prices after weaker-than-expected economic data from top raw materials consumer China sparked concerns over demand.

Nickel, chiefly used in stainless steel, is still correcting from a surge to two-year highs this month on hopes for a bounce in demand for electric vehicles.

"The Chinese data out earlier today was broadly speaking negative. They paint a view of the Chinese economy where growth looks to be slowing," Danske Bank analyst Jens Pedersen said.

"The way we see China here in the big picture is for credit tightening, which is feeding through to the real economy, and that will mean lower demand for base metals."