Nickel and aluminum futures rise in LME due to increased supply concerns

Foreign news on March 2, London nickel and aluminum futures rose on Wednesday, after tightening sanctions on major metal producer Russia, the market is increasingly worried about Russian supply disruptions, while low inventories also exacerbate supply concerns.

Three-month nickel on the London Metal Exchange (LME) rose 1.8 per cent to $25550 a tonne, hovering near a more than 10-year high hit last week.

Nickel, the main force of the Shanghai Futures Exchange, closed up 2.5% at 180260 yuan per ton.

The world's three largest container shipping companies suspended shipments of goods to and from Russia on Tuesday in response to western sanctions against Moscow, dealing a further blow to Russia's international trade.

"there are more signs that geopolitical risks have turned into supply disruptions," ING said in a report, adding that aluminum and nickel prices were supported because of signs that metal flows in Russia were increasingly limited due to transport problems or self-restraint.

Russia produces about 6 per cent of the world's aluminium, accounting for 7 per cent of the world's nickel supply and is a major producer of natural gas.

Meanwhile, nickel stocks in LME warehouses fell to 79524 tonnes, the lowest since December 2019. Spot nickel is priced at a premium of $454 a tonne over a three-month contract.

The inventory of aluminium in the LME registered warehouse is 814275 tons, compared with about 2 million tons in March last year.

LME aluminum for three-month delivery rose 1 per cent to $3511 a tonne, approaching the record high of $3525 set on Monday.

LME copper for three-month delivery edged up 0.1 per cent to $10075 a tonne, lead for three-month delivery rose 0.2 per cent to $2413 a tonne, and tin for three-month delivery fell 0.5 per cent to $45550 a tonne. Zinc for three-month delivery rose 2.4 per cent to $3837.5 a tonne, its highest level since October 2021.

Shanghai copper rose 0.9 per cent to 71520 yuan per ton, Shanghai Aluminum rose 1.4 per cent to 22955 yuan, Shanghai zinc climbed 2.2 per cent to 25740 yuan, Shanghai lead fell 0.03 per cent to 15580 yuan, and Shanghai tin rose 0.2 per cent to 340490 yuan.

The Fed plans to end the loose monetary policy used to fight the epidemic, but it faces an unexpected test ahead of time, as the new economic and financial risks brought about by the conflict between Russia and Ukraine have had an impact on global markets.