SteelOrbis has been informed that as of February 3 ex-China stainless steel coil export prices are at $2,300-2,350/mt FOB, decreasing by $50/mt on average compared to January 27, reflecting weaker sentiments and the fall in nickel prices after the previous surge.
Indonesia's Tsingshan has held its export quotations for 304 CRC stainless steel coil (2 mm) at $1,995/mt FOB, after four rounds of increases in January.
During the given period, local stainless steel prices from Shanxi Province-based Chinese steelmaker Taigang Stainless Steel Co., Ltd have decreased by RMB 225/mt ($32.3/mt).
During the given week, LME nickel prices have moved down sharply amid the significant decreases seen in other commodity prices, dampening market sentiments. They dropped to slightly below $17,000/mt on February 2, while in the second half of January LME nickel prices fluctuated at above $18,000/mt. The plunge in precious metal prices over the past two days has exerted a negative impact on the stainless steel market. Stainless steel futures prices have also indicated big decreases due to the prevailing bearish sentiments among market players. Since the Chinese New Year holiday (February 14-23) is approaching, demand for stainless steel from downstream users will remain slack, which will negatively affect its prices. It is thought that stainless steel prices in the Chinese domestic market will likely edge down further in the coming week.
The previous long uptrend seen in January was driven by the plan of Indonesia's Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources to cut 2026 nickel ore production quotas to 250-260 million mt, which is almost a third lower than in 2025. Final approval of the plan will be announced after the Chinese New Year holiday.
Stainless steel futures at the Shanghai Future Exchange closed at RMB 13,585/mt ($1,952/mt) on Tuesday, February 3, decreasing by RMB 955/mt ($137/mt) or 6.6 percent compared to January 27, while decreasing by 1.77 percent compared to the previous trading day, February 2.
$1 = RMB 6.9608
