[Morning Meeting Minutes on May 13] In terms of supply, although there was precipitation at major nickel ore loading points in the Philippines, with relatively heavy rainfall in areas such as Sta Cruz, Eastern Davao, and Tawi Tawi, the rainfall in the Surigao region decreased compared to previous weeks. Overall, following the reduction in rainfall in Surigao, the supply of nickel ore from the Philippines is expected to increase. On the demand side, with the continuous decline in downstream NPI prices and the deepening of the inversion margin, the sentiment of domestic NPI smelters regarding raw material procurement has been dampened, and the support for nickel ore prices from the demand side continues to weaken. Looking ahead, the domestic transaction prices of nickel ore in the Philippines may be dragged down by the downstream sector and operate under pressure.

The following table shows the ferrous and nonferrous metals movement on the SHFE and DCE on 13 May, 2025

Philippine nickel ore prices are under pressure due to downstream constraints, with a divergence in prices between Indonesia's local ore for pyrometallurgy and ore used for hydrometallurgy

[SMM Daily Review: Policy Transmission May Still Require Time to Materialize, Short-Term Market Transaction Prices Under Pressure] On May 13, the average price of SMM 8-12% high-grade NPI was 942.5 yuan/mtu (ex-factory, tax included), unchanged from the previous working day...

Today, driven by the easing of Sino-US trade tensions, non-ferrous metals generally rose, and LME nickel prices increased slightly. As of now, the MHP coefficient (relative to the SMM battery-grade nickel sulphate index) stands at 84%-85%, and the FOB price of Indonesian MHP is US$12,796 per mt (Ni contained).

On May 13, the SMM battery-grade nickel sulphate index price was 27,864 yuan/mt, with the quotation range for battery-grade nickel sulphate at 27,860-28,370 yuan/mt. The average price remained stable WoW.

[5.12 Morning Meeting Minutes] Base metal prices generally rose on Monday as news emerged of substantive progress in trade negotiations between the US and China, alleviating concerns about a global recession to some extent. Another reason for the outstanding performance of nickel prices was the rumor that the Philippines planned to implement a ban on nickel ore exports starting next month, which could potentially lead to a shortage in nickel ore supply. However, SMM analysis suggests that the short-term impact on the nickel market may stem more from sentiment, and it may be difficult for this policy to have a fundamental impact on the nickel industry in the short term.