11 October 2022 – Asian spot and futures prices for nickel rose today, in some cases significantly. LME inventories continue to fall. And in China, steel and stainless steel production will be cut by up to 50% due to the upcoming 20th National Congress in Beijing.

Asian nickel prices climb higher
Nickel prices in Asia, spot as well as futures, rose in today’s trading, in some cases significantly. SHFE nickel futures rose by more than 3% in some cases. On the Chinese spot market, nickel rose by more than 4.3%. And premiums also went up by almost 24%.
LME stocks continue to fall
Stocks on the LME continue to point downwards and the sell-off continues. Compared to the beginning of September, stocks have fallen again by about 4%.
China: Steel production cut due to blue skies
Steel production in the important province of Hebei has to be reduced by up to 50% in October due to the upcoming 20th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party in Beijing. One fifth of China’s steel and stainless steel production is concentrated in Hebei province.
Already for the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, the steel industry there had to reduce production significantly, leading to tighter supply and rising prices.
Price increases to be expected
The current picture reinforces our stance already taken last week that a price decline is less and less plausible and that further price increases for stainless steel are to be expected.
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