[Ni] CBI Morning Review - 2008/12/17 Nickel Market

SHANGHAI, Dec. 17 (CBI China) -- Three-month LME nickel opened at RMB 10,000/mt, high RMB 10,100/mt, low RMB 9,600/mt, closed at RMB 9,600/mt, down RMB 350/mt. Premium is RMB 123/mt, inventory is 70,056mt, up 108mt.

    The Federal Reserve cut interest rates with the target rate of 0-0.25%. This will deepen the market's anxiety.
 
    More victims in the 50 billion U.S. dollars fraud case of the former chairman of Nasdaq Bernard Mak Oberdorfer have emerged. U.S. stocks closed in decline on Monday, led by financial stocks.
 
    China's 2009 price regulation target is higher than 3% in 2007 but lower than 4.8% in 2008. A number of experts said price regulation target in 2009 will likely be 4% from this range. National Development and Reform Commission raised the price target in 2009 in order to leave room for price reform in some industries and areas. 

    On December 12th, in the National Information Office press conference, the minister of Ministry of Industry and Information Technology Li Yizhong said, the key industries supported by policies and measures include seven main categories: tax cuts, support for the merger and reorganization of enterprises, exploring the rural markets potential, expanding exports, the state reserves, starting technology reform projects in enterprises. 

    Zhou Xiaochuan said that the global financial crisis exerted great impact on China, the Government is still assessing the overall impact of the financial crisis on China and making the macro-economic measures to deal with the crisis; meanwhile the Government will continue to focus on the market reform and opening up. Although China has pressures to cut interest rates from now to the middle of next year, the declines in consumer price index (CPI) rate should be taken into account. The RMB exchange rate is dependent on the market; the authorities have to intervene in the exchange rate on the basis of market.

    Although the positive economic polices were introduced frequently, enterprises are facing financial return and business settlement due to the approach of the new year, the downstream demand remains soft as well, therefore the downward trend of prices can not be changed in the short term, and the nickel prices will remain at USD 9500/mt with wide fluctuations.

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