Ferronickel prices rose while profit margins of spot ore were still shrinking
Since the gradual recovery of the market after the holiday, prices of nickel ore and ferronickel rose significantly. In addition to the rising nickel prices driving the market sentiment, support from the fundamentals was also strong.
Spot prices rose sharply amid active transactions, likely to remain high under cost support
The stainless steel spot market basically resumed work last week with strong bullish sentiment after the holiday. The price of stainless steel contracts rose firmly at first when downstream companies were restocking, and then fell back as the companies were reluctant to make purchases at high prices, and the transactions turned quiet. The overall transaction performance stood stable last week.
Overseas Mn ore offers: Comilog April offers for Gabonese ore
Comilog offered manganese lump originating from Gabon for April delivery to China, at $5.35/mtu, up $0.55/mtu from offers for March.
Manufacturing activities across nickel downstream sectors retreated to contraction in February
Manufacturing activities across nickel downstream sectors in China retreated to the contractionary territory in February. SMM data showed that the purchasing manager's index (PMI) for downstream nickel industries, including stainless steel, electroplating, alloy and battery, stood at 46.93 in February, down 3.68 points from January. A reading below 50 indicates contraction.
Looking back on February, SHFE tin contracts dropped sharply at the end of the month after experiencing a frenzied increase in the previous period.
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