China’s domestic stainless steel market has mostly moved sideways in the past week, though with some slight upticks also observed.
Global nickel prices have fluctuated on an upward trend during the past week. On June 21, the three-month nickel price at the London Metal Exchange (LME) closed at $9,190/mt, while LME nickel inventory on the same date totaled 386,064 mt.
The upticks in nickel prices have provided some support in the past week for prices in the Chinese stainless steel market, where low demand is still the main problem facing the market. Meanwhile, producers have been restricting production volumes to support prices. Traders are maintaining a wait-and-see stance. As for the coming week, domestic stainless steel prices may be characterized by a soft trend as nickel prices are unlikely to continue their rising movement.
| Specification (mm) | Region | Steel plant/origin | Price (RMB/mt) | Price ($/mt) | Weekly change (RMB/mt) |
| 202/No.1 (3.0 x 120 x C) | Foshan | Guangzhou Lianzhong | 10,300 | 1,565 | 0 |
| 201/No.1 (3.0 x 1,219 x C) | Foshan | Guangzhou Lianzhong | 6,400 | 973 | 0 |
| 304/2B (1.0 x 1,219 x C) | Wuxi | Taigang | 12,800 | 1,945 | ↑100 |
| 304/No.1(3.0 x 1,219 x C) | Wuxi | Taigang | 12,400 | 1,884 | 0 |
| 430/2B (3.0 x 1,219 x C) | Wuxi | Taigang | 7,150 | 1,087 | 0 |
| 430/No.1(3.0 x 1,219 x C) | Wuxi | Krupp | 6,500 | 988 | ↑100 |
All prices are ex-warehouse and include 17 percent VAT.
$1 = RMB 6.58