SMM #1 Refined Nickel Price Falls by 1,700 Yuan/mt, Spot Premiums Decline

Faced with a severe energy supply crunch and skyrocketing prices triggered by the Middle East conflict, the Philippine Department of Energy has authorized the temporary use of "dirtier" Euro-II petroleum products, which contain ten times more sulfur than the current Euro-IV standard, specifically for older vehicles, industrial plants, and the shipping sector. This emergency measure follows diesel prices breaching 100 pesos per liter for the first time, a crisis exacerbated by the country's limited refining capacity and the 1998 Oil Deregulation Law. As the region grapples with the obstruction of the Strait of Hormuz, the Philippines joins neighbors like Vietnam and Thailand in pivoting back to high-emission fuels and coal to ensure domestic energy security amidst the global turmoil.

[SMM Daily Review: High-Grade NPI May Still Have Downside Room Under the Dual Pressure of End-Users and Steel Scrap] March 24 News: SMM's upstream sentiment factor for high-grade NPI was 2.88, up 0.01 MoM, while the downstream sentiment factor for high-grade NPI was 1.59, down 0.04 MoM.