China’s domestic stainless steel prices have moved sideways or up slightly during the past seven days.
Global nickel prices have increased during the past week. On July 15, the three-month nickel price at the London Metal Exchange (LME) closed at $15,215/mt, while LME nickel inventory on the same date totaled 206,580 mt.
Overall trading activity in the domestic stainless steel market has remained slack due to the off-season, while some traders have chosen to raise their prices by small margins due to higher nickel prices, though most traders have kept their quoted prices stable in order to close more deals amid the sluggish demand. As for the week ahead, stainless steel prices may just indicate small fluctuations.
| Spec. - Grade (mm) | Origin | Price | Weekly change | ||
| (RMB/mt) | ($/mt) | (RMB/mt) | ($/mt) | ||
| 202/No.1 (3.0 x 1,500 x C) | Guangzhou Lianzhong | 12,300 | 1,720 | 0 | 0 |
| 201/No.1 (3.0 x 1,219 x C) | Guangzhou Lianzhong | 7,050 | 986 | 100 | 14 |
| 304/2B (1.0 x 1,219 x C) | Taigang | 13,500 | 1,887 | 0 | 0 |
| 304/No.1 (3.0 x 1,219 x C) | Taigang | 12,700 | 1,775 | 50 | 7 |
| 430/2B (3.0 x 1,219 x C) | Taigang | 7,000 | 979 | 0 | 0 |
| 430/No.1 (3.0 x 1,500 x C) | Taigang | 6,600 | 923 | 0 | 0 |
13 percent VAT is included in the above prices.
$1 = RMB 7.153