Aluminium prices in Shanghai fell to their lowest in more than three months on Thursday, as tumbling coal prices eased worries about rising production costs for the energy-intensive metal.

The most-traded December copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange dropped as much as 7.6% to 19,200 yuan ($2,999.95) a tonne, the lowest since July 22.

The contract has lost 23% since the beginning of last week.

Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange declined as much as 2.1% to a two-month low of $2,630 a tonne, having shed 19% since Oct. 18 when the contract hit its highest since July 2008.

Chinese thermal coal prices surged to a record 1,892 yuan on Oct. 19 on supply shortage, but have since lost some 50% on a series of measures implemented by the country's authorities to curb rocketing energy costs.

Fundamentals

• ShFE tin hit its limit down, tumbling 8% to 258,370 yuan a tonne, its lowest since Sept. 22. LME tin fell to a level unseen since Oct. 5 at $34,280 a tonne.

• ShFE nickel dropped as much as 4.9% to its lowest since Oct. 14 of 143,500 yuan a tonne and LME nickel lost as much as 0.6% to trade near a two-week low of $19,300 a tonne.