China's domestic stainless steel market has mostly followed a sideways trend during the past week.
Global nickel prices have indicated minor fluctuations during the past week, with prices now the same as they were one week ago. On April 14, the three-month nickel price at the London Metal Exchange (LME) closed at $12,550/mt, while LME nickel inventory on the same date totaled 431,346 mt.
During the past seven days, the Chinese stainless market has been mainly stable though with some slight decreases also seen. Overall trading activity has remained on the sluggish side with downstream buyers only purchasing in line with their needs. Mills have continued to reduce their supply volumes, but their stocks are sufficient to meet demand. Traders are mostly keeping their prices unchanged due to the stability of costs. As for the coming week, it is believed that just slight fluctuations may be seen in domestic stainless steel prices.