Stainless steel scrap deviates from nickel price rally

[wisepowder]

Stainless steel scrap deviates from nickel price rally

There is a de-coupling of the stainless steel and nickel market," one processor said at the sidelines of the BIR conference in Budapest, Hungary last week.To get more news about 304 stainless steel, you can visit stainless-steel-supplier official website.

The three-month nickel contract traded on the London Metal Exchange (LME) rallied in July after the Indonesian government first discussed bringing forward its planned nickel ore ban by two years from 2022. The policy was confirmed in September and Indonesia will stop exporting low-grade nickel ore from 1 January 2020.

Following the announcement of the ban, the LME three-month nickel price rocketed to a five-year high at $18,475/t on 2 September, up 52pc from $12,120/t on 2 July. Prices have since corrected downwards to $16,885/t on 25 October but continued to hover at around four-year highs.

Prices for 304 stainless steel scrap solids did move up throughout July and August in response to the nickel rise, with the Argus weekly 304 scrap solids cif Rotterdam price rising from €980-1,050/t on 4 July to €1,100-1,150/t on 12 September.

But the pace of the increase lagged the meteoric nickel increase. The average Argus weekly price assessment of 304 stainless steel scrap solid over the 4 July-5 September period was €1,076.25/t ($1193.29/t), compared to an average LME nickel price of $15,000/t over the same time.

Since mid-September, the 304 price has actually fallen back to its early-July level. The Argus stainless scrap solids 304 (18-8) cif Rotterdam price was assessed at €950-1,000/t on 24 October, equivalent to 47.9-50.5¢/lb.

The 304 stainless steel series typically contains 8pc nickel and 18pc chrome. The price formula of stainless steel scrap consists of nickel payables — calculated based on a discount to the LME nickel contract — and chrome prices. The nickel payables are negotiated between the stainless steel mills and blenders every month in Europe.