March 19 (Reuters) - Most base metals fell slightly on Tuesday, pressured by a stronger dollar, making greenback-priced metals more expensive to holders of other currencies.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) eased 0.1% to $9,076.50 per metric ton by 0249 GMT, while the most-traded May copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) advanced 0.1% to 73,170 yuan ($10,165.04) a ton.
The dollar was stronger, backed by investors adjusting their expectations of the pace and scale of Fed cuts this year following a recent run of resilient U.S. economic data pointing to still-sticky inflation.
Meanwhile, Comex copper speculators raised their long positions to 69,941 contracts, the highest level in more than 13 months, and switched to being net long, by March 12, latest data by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission showed.
LME aluminium dipped 0.1% to $2,274.50 a ton, nickel fell 0.1% to $17,850, zinc declined 0.4% to $2,523, while lead rose 0.1% to $2,092.
LME tin shed 0.2% to $28,635, on track for the first decline in five sessions, as supply disruption in major producer Indonesia showed signs of easing after the top miner there resumed exports for the first time this year in March.
SHFE aluminium edged up 0.1% at 19,280 yuan a ton, tin climbed 1.8% to 231,920 yuan, while nickel fell 0.8% to 139,420 yuan, zinc declined 0.7% to 21,235 yuan and lead eased 0.2% to 16,220 yuan.
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DATA/EVENTS (GMT)
0330 Australia RBA Cash Rate March
1000 Germany ZEW Economic Sentiment March
1000 Germany ZEW Current Conditions March
1230 US Housing Starts Number Feb
-- US Federal Open Market Committee starts its
two-day meeting on interest rates
($1 = 7.1982 yuan) (Reporting by Mai Nguyen in Hanoi; Editing by Rashmi Aich)
