According to the monitoring of nickel prices by Shengyi Society, nickel prices rebounded slightly this week (9.10-9.18). On September 11th, nickel prices dropped to 121716 yuan/ton, a new low since May 2021. As of September 18th, spot nickel prices were reported at 124675 yuan/ton, with a weekly increase of 2,21% and a year-on-year decrease of 24.25%.
Macro wise: On Wednesday, the Russian President stated that Moscow should consider restricting nickel exports. If Russia implements the proposed ban, global nickel supply may shift from the current global oversupply of 100000 tons to a shortage. The news has pushed nickel prices up significantly, reversing the recent unfavorable trend. Russia is a major supplier of nickel to China and Europe. Nickel price is currently the weakest metal in LME trend.
Supply side: There is an oversupply in both domestic and international markets, and inventory continues to increase. As of September 13th, Shanghai nickel inventory was 24014 tons, an increase of 1571 tons from last week; On September 18th, LME nickel inventory was 123726 tons, an increase of 2070 tons from September 10th.
In terms of demand: The market will still be in the destocking stage in the near future, and the demand for spot goods has not increased as expected. The market activity still needs to be improved. Stainless steel prices are running weakly at a low level. On September 18th, the benchmark price of stainless steel plates in Shengyi Society was 12435.71 yuan/ton, a decrease of 2.52% from the beginning of the month. The demand for alloys in military and shipping industries is still acceptable, and customers have a strong need to continue.
Market forecast: Global inventory is under pressure, nickel prices hit a three-year low, demand support is insufficient, and the rebound from bottoming out is limited. It is expected that nickel prices will mainly consolidate in the short term.
| http://www.thiourea.net |