Ferronickel prices moved up amid rising costs and tight supply

SHANGHAI, Oct 19 (SMM) - The SMM average price of 8-12% high-grade NPI stood at 1445 yuan/mtu (ex-works, including tax) on Friday October 15, up 15 yuan/mtu from a week earlier. And the average price of Indonesian NPI stood at 1442.5 yuan/mtu (including tax, delivery to ports), 20 yuan/mtu higher than the prior week.

At present, the stainless steel mills are gradually resuming the production, and the demand for ferronickel has picked up. However, the ferronickel plants are more greatly influenced by the power rationing as its energy consumption has been at a high level, and the recovery in production has not been as expected. Meanwhile, the production in Liaoning and Inner Mongolia has still been restricted, and that in Guangxi and Hebei has been subject to government notices. The production in Guangdong remains suspended, and the output is likely to be cut further in Shandong. The price of ferronickel will remain high supported by the tight supply of ferronickel and warming downstream demand. The market participants also tend to hold the prices firm in consideration of the rising prices of auxiliary materials like coal and coke, as well as the higher production costs of ferronickel amid rising power prices in Inner Mongolia. The prices of high-grade NPI are expected to move between 1430-1460 yuan/mtu (ex-works, including tax) this week.