SHANGHAI, Aug. 3 --

Nickel

According to data from China Customs, imports of refined nickel in June were 12.62kt, up 17.73% MoM. The price gap between domestic and LME nickel prices was narrower in May than that in April, and domestic nickel prices were higher than LME nickel prices in late May and early June. In this context, China's imports of nickel were up MoM due to a favorable domestic/LME nickel price ratio.

Nickel Ore

According to data from China Customs, China's total imports of nickel ore were 2.25 million mt in June, up 11.51% MoM and up 39.18 YoY.  China's imports of laterite nickel ore were 2.21 million mt in June, including 1.33 million from the Philippines, up 46.05% YoY, and 0.88 million mt from Indonesia, up 37.9% YoY.  China's imports of nickel ore continued to grow during June on a monthly basis, with the growing part mainly from laterite nickel ore, but the MoM growth pace in June was lower than that in May. China's demand for nickel ore was negative affected as some NPI producers with blast furnaces halted production during May and June due to weaker demand for NPI and environmental crackdowns. In addition, arrival of nickel ore were also negatively affected by limited ships available in Indonesia. In this context, China's imports of nickel ore in June grew at a slower pace.

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