Nickel

摘要

After suffering a marked correction in early July the LME cash price for nickel has since shown surprising resilience, with bears encountering solid support at 14,000 dollars/tonne despite several tests of this level. The initial price weakness at the end of June stemmed from reports of large cutbacks to stainless steel production, immediately calling into question the previously buoyant sentiment towards nickel. Amid mounting evidence of weakness in the stainless sector and a belief that excessive product inventories, particularly on the cold rolled side, would take much longer to draw down than previously anticipated, prices fell heavily, with the LME cash quotation losing 1,025 dollars/tonne between July 12~(th) and July 19~(th). Since then nickel prices have stabilised. Indeed the failure of attempts on the 14,000 dollars/tonne level has prompted short-covering and a mini-rally. A sunnier economic environment, buoyant demand in non-stainless uses and low visible stocks are all making a contribution.