Nickel prices for cash settlements in the London Metal Exchange (LME), which had decreased sharply in the second half of February, closed at $16,515/mt yesterday, March 7. As of February 1, nickel prices at the LME were at $18,380/mt, while they closed the month at the level of $16,660/mt.
This sharp decrease in nickel prices put the brakes on the upward momentum of stainless steel prices which had been observed in January, preventing them from increasing further and creating downward expectations.
Meanwhile, Taiwanese and South Korean stainless steel suppliers are offering 304/2B prime quality stainless steel cold rolled coil (CRC) of 2.0 mm thickness to Turkey at the range of $2,700-2,800/mt CFR. In addition, European origin surplus and second quality materials are still being quoted at lower levels, while stainless steel prices will most likely trend sideways in the coming period if nickel prices show no big changes during the current month.
Early this month, most Far Eastern stainless steel producers announced their list prices for March orders, which are stable as compared to February. South Korea-based POSCO as well as Taiwan's YUSCO and TangEng have kept their prices unchanged, while Chinese mill LISCO and Japan-based NSSC have revised their domestic prices upward.
Changes in nickel prices at the LME from February 1 to March 6 are as follows:
