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The most-traded July nickel contract price on the SHFE rose to 112,510 yuan ($17,607) per tonne at 10.41am Shanghai time, up 1,990 yuan per tonne from yesterday’s close.
The nickel price had briefly climbed to 112,750 yuan per tonne couple of minutes earlier, hitting its highest level since May 2015.
Nickel inventories on the SHFE have been steadily declining since mid-January, with deliverable nickel stocks on the exchange dropping a further 714 tonnes week-on-week to 32,286 tonnes as of May 25. That compares with 57,395 tonnes held on January 12.
“Nickel plate supply is still tight; in addition, the continuous decline in nickel stocks has lent support to nickel prices,” Citic Futures Research said.
The positive performance of the stainless sector added to the upward pressure on nickel prices.
Stainless steel prices in the domestic China market have rallied since the start of May.
Metal Bulletin’s assessment of prices for benchmark 304 stainless cold-rolled coil in the major market of Wuxi was 14,800-15,300 yuan per tonne including VAT for the week ended Thursday May 24, compared with 14,200-14,800 yuan per tonne on May 3.
By contrast, aluminium prices were under pressure this morning due to weakening raw materials prices. The most-traded July aluminium contract price on the SHFE dipped to 14,775 yuan per tonne on 10.41am Shanghai time, down 25 yuan per tonne from yesterday’s close.
Metal Bulletin’s assessed Chinese alumina price dropped to 2,950-3,000 yuan per tonne on May 24, compared with 3,100-3,200 yuan per tonne on April 26.
“The recent drop in alumina prices has lowered production costs for aluminium smelters,” Citic Futures Research said.
Other base metals prices rally
Currency moves and data releases