Recent market trends

摘要

After peaking on the 8th of February at 21,830 dollars/t, nickel prices continued to slide to below the 16,000 dollars/t level at the time of writing - the lowest level since mid-2009. Further bad news on the eurozone was a key reason for the dip in prices. Despite averaging up to 16,540 dollars/t in June overall and above 16,300 dollars/t so far in July, a recovery, even if mild, remains far from certain. Supply/demand fundamentals have uncharacteristically weakened over the past quarter. The market surplus has expanded, largely because of faltering demand, and open interest has increased owing to further fund sell-offs, exaggerating the nickel-price decline.