On September 16, SMM battery-grade nickel sulphate average prices declined.
Cost side, LME nickel saw a significant inventory buildup yesterday. With macro conditions already under considerable pressure, nickel prices plunged again today, driving down the spot production cost of nickel sulphate. Supply side, some producers held relatively high inventory levels and sought production cuts to destock, leading to a slight overall decline in supply. Demand side, some downstream enterprises still relied primarily on long-term contract supply, with weak sentiment for building spot order inventories and relatively low acceptance of nickel salt prices. Today, the Willingness to Sell Sentiment Factor for upstream nickel salt smelters was 2.1, the procurement sentiment factor for downstream precursor plants was 2.1, and the sentiment factor for integrated enterprises was 2.3 (historical data can be accessed via the database).
Looking ahead, spot market activity is expected to remain weak in the short term, keeping nickel sulphate prices under overall pressure.
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