Stainless Steel News and Nickel Prices, Molybdenum, Metal Pricing, Ferrochrome
Daily Nickel/Stainless Steel Briefing
- Nickel closed Wednesday’s trading session unchanged. Indicators at 6:00 am CST today show nickel trading unchanged. Stockpiles of nickel stored in LME licensed warehouses fell on Wednesday and ended the day just over the 74,200 tonne level. LME remains closed, as was Shanghai nickel markets today. This did not keep panic from the market though, and Chinese stainless steel futures fell to their limit overnight, and are basically back to where they ended last week. That market is so volatile, that Chinese media reports stainless manufacturers are not offering quotations at the moment. No one seems to have any idea what nickel traders will do when the market reopens, and we suspect, that the London Metal Exchange is doing more damage control, than worrying about any particular buyer or seller. So where will stainless prices go? We doubt they will head any lower than they started the month at, because regardless of the trading games going on, the sanctions in place, are causing logistical problems for many sources. And since no one knows what will happen to the price of nickel over the next few weeks, trying to predict the price of stainless is a throw of the dice … in the dark …. on a pitching boat …. etc. As of this morning, the LME has yet to announce a resumption of trading target. Stay safe out there and have a great day.
- Average price of LME traded cash nickel so far this month – $15.29/lb
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Reports
Wednesday’s market review – Aluminium, others spiral lower as investors flee after nickel crisis – Base metals slumped on Wednesday, including aluminum despite continued worries about Russian supply, as cautious investors slashed positions in the wake of a halt in nickel trading. – more
London Metal Exchange mulls short-selling curbs amid nickel crisis – The London Metal Exchange will consider clamping down on short-selling after a giant bet against the nickel price by a Chinese billionaire went awry and forced the bourse to suspend trading. – more
- LME scrambles to prevent damage from nickel market crisis – more
- China’s regulators check risks to futures brokers from nickel positions – more
Outlook for Ill-fated Stainless Steel – Stainless steel prices rose from 18,500 yuan/mt to 21,500 yuan/mt and then fell back to 18,500 yuan/mt within three days. – more
- China stainless steel futures hits lower limit on nickel retreat hope – Chinese stainless steel futures opened 12% lower to hit daily trading limit on Thursday, following Shanghai Futures Exchange halting some nickel trading and fuelled by … – more
SHFE Adjusted the Margin Ratio and the Range of Price Limit of Nickel Futures Trading – On March 10, Shanghai Futures Exchange issued a notice on adjusting the margin ratio and the range of price limit of nickel futures trading. The relevant contents are as follows: – more
SunSirs: On March 8, the Spot Price of Stainless Steel Was Not Quoted for the Time Being – (excerpt) With the sharp rise in nickel prices, most stainless steel traders are reluctant to sell because the shortage of resources is difficult to relieve in the short term, and they do not offer quotations. The market is currently in a wait-and-see mode.
European steel industry wants LME nickel shut until stability restored – The London Metal Exchange (LME) should keep nickel trading suspended until price stability can be guaranteed, the European Steel Association (Eurofer) said on Wednesday, a day after nickel prices doubled in a matter of hours. – more
- European stainless market slows amid skyrocketing costs – more
- European nickel trade disrupted by LME suspension – more
- His Raw Materials: Putin pushes back against oil and gas sanctions with retaliatory measures – more
- EUROFER urges LME and FCA to take necessary action to prevent further artificial surges in nickel prices – more
Chinese tycoon in wrong nickel bets says business is sound with state support as debacle erases US$7.3 billion from related stocks – Huayou Cobalt lost US$4.1 billion in market value over two days as investors reassess their business ties and collection risks – more
Nickel miner with Tsingshan Ties falls 23% before trading was halted – An Australian nickel miner with ties to Tsingshan Holding Group Co., the world’s top producer of the material, resumed trading after an earlier plunge triggered a pause within an hour of morning trading in Sydney. – more
After 16 years, Vale’s big nickel bet looks like a winner – An unprecedented surge in nickel costs fueled by the conflict in Ukraine is transforming a once-sputtering portfolio of mines into valued assets. – more
Wild nickel market may get relief from Indonesia’s higher output – Indonesia, the world’s top nickel producer, will raise production capacity of the metal after prices soared past $100,000 a tonne, while the coal market is unlikely to get similar relief. – more
Zimbabwe must do more to stop mineral revenue leakages: Zimcodd – While good mineral resource governance seeks to ensure the exploitation of mineral resources for the benefit of the economy, improvement of the quality of life, and poverty reduction (Diallo, 2015), Zimbabwe like most African states presents a divergent picture11 of what has been termed the natural resource curse phenomena. – more
Madagascar’s Ambatovy mine on track to deliver ‘no net loss’ of surrounding forest – Recent research led by Bangor University found that Sumitomo’s Ambatovy cobalt-nickel mine in eastern Madagascar is on track to deliver ‘no net loss’ of the unique forest habitat destroyed by the operation. – more
Rising Metal Costs Threaten Automakers – As if automakers didn’t have enough on their plates. The cost of auto industry metal is skyrocketing, from the palladium in catalytic converters to the aluminum in the body. – more
- ‘It’s all coming at the worst time:’ How sky-high nickel price could hamper EV efforts – more
Other News
- Reuters The Day Ahead – pdf here
- War in Ukraine Triggers Global Food Emergency – more
Economic Stats and Prices
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Why Stainless Steel
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