A spike in nickel prices as a result of a flip-flop decision in Indonesia regarding an ore export ban of the alloying metal failed to offer any support to China's stainless steel market over the past week.
Reports of an immediate commencement of the nickel ore export ban in Indonesia had emerged on Monday October 28, but a day later, Indonesian officials said that the prohibition will only come effect in January 2020 as previously scheduled.The three-month nickel contract on the London Metal Exchange ended Wednesday October 30's trading session at $16,850-16,855 per tonne, up $430 per tonne from a week earlier.The most-traded December nickel contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange closed at 134,160 yuan ($19,002) per tonne on Wednesday, up 4,190 yuan per tonne from a week earlier.DomesticFastmarkets' weekly price assessment for stainless steel cold-rolled coil 2mm grade 304 domestic, ex-whs China in the country's major market of Wuxi was 15,500-15,900 yuan per tonne including value-added tax for...