(Adds official prices) LONDON, Nov 16 (Reuters) - Prices of industrial metals eased on Tuesday as the dollar on positive sentiment from a virtual meeting between the leaders of the world’s largest economies. The closely watched conversation between Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Joe Biden yielded no immediate outcomes but struck a positive tone and was seen as a chance to improve relations. The dollar index climbed to a 16-month high, making copper and other metals, priced in the U.S. greenback, less attractive to global buyers. “(The interaction between U.S. and China) is positive, we saw what happened in 2019 and last year with the trade dispute: the macro suffered,” said independent analyst Robin Bhar, adding that there was a knock-on negative effect on base metals. Benchmark copper on the London Metal Exchange eased 0.3% to $9,645 per tonne, in official trading. U.S. retail sales rose more than expected in October, giving the economy a lift at the start of the fourth quarter and raising the likelihood of a tightening in monetary policy. OUTLOOK: Copper prices are expected to fall as we move into 2022 due to accelerated ramp-up of mine supplies and falling demand, mainly from the slowing Chinese construction sector that is the biggest end-user for the metal, Capital Economics said. INVENTORIES: On-warrant copper inventories in LME-registered warehouses are at their highest in nearly a month at 53,175 tonnes MCUSTX-TOTAL SPREAD: The premium of LME cash copper to the three-month contract CMCU0-3 has plunged to $32.50 from about $1,103.50 a month ago, pointing to easing concerns of nearby availability of metal. ALUMINIUM: Prices for the light-weight metal were dragged down by falling prices of thermal coal, which lowered production costs for smelters in top producer China that are powered by the fossil fuel. LME aluminium shed 1.1% to $2,627 a tonne, and has lost about 18% over the last month. COAL OUTPUT: China said it would continue raising coal supply as part of attempts to cool prices and increase power generation capacity. OTHER METALS: Zinc lost 0.6% to $3,197, lead gave up 0.1% to $2,323, tin was down 0.1% to $37,450 while nickel was flat at $19,525. (Reporting by Zandi Shabalala; Editing by Ramakrishnan M., Kirsten Donovan)