China’s domestic stainless steel prices have followed a mostly stable trend during the past seven days, with some downticks also seen.
Global nickel prices have rebounded during the past week. On November 25, the three-month nickel price at the London Metal Exchange (LME) closed at $14,920/mt, while LME nickel inventory on the same date totaled 253,482 mt.
Overall trading activity in the domestic stainless market has remained sluggish in the past week. Prices have been supported by the recent increases in nickel prices, though some traders still chose to reduce their quoted prices slightly in order to close more deals. As for the week ahead, considering the support from the cost side but the weakness of the demand side, it is believed that stainless steel prices may just indicate small fluctuations.
| Spec. - Grade (mm) | Origin | Price | Weekly change | ||
| (RMB/mt) | ($/mt) | (RMB/mt) | ($/mt) | ||
| 202/No.1 (3.0 x 1,500 x C) | Guangzhou Lianzhong | 12,150 | 1,716 | -50 | -5 |
| 201/No.1 (3.0 x 1,219 x C) | Guangzhou Lianzhong | 7,450 | 1,052 | -50 | -6 |
| 304/2B (1.0 x 1,219 x C) | Taigang | 13,400 | 1,893 | 0 | 2 |
| 304/No.1 (3.0 x 1,219 x C) | Taigang | 12,700 | 1,794 | 0 | 2 |
| 430/2B (3.0 x 1,219 x C) | Taigang | 7,550 | 1,066 | 0 | 1 |
| 430/No.1 (3.0 x 1,500 x C) | Taigang | 6,800 | 960 | 0 | 1 |
13 percent VAT is included in the above prices.
$1 = RMB 7.080