Downstream Month-End Procurement Period, Nickel Salt Prices Continued Rising This Week
As of Friday, the SMM battery-grade nickel sulphate index price stood at 27,575 yuan/mt, with the quotation range for battery-grade nickel sulphate at 27,650-27,850 yuan/mt, and the average price rose further WoW.
Demand side, precursor producers' month-end procurement period arrived, and with the approaching September-October peak season, some producers saw increased precursor orders, leading to higher acceptance of nickel sulphate prices. Supply side, nickel salt smelters had limited spot supply, coupled with high-cost raw material pressure, supporting sustained upward nickel sulphate quotations. Looking ahead, as precursor enterprises enter their procurement period and spot nickel sulphate remains tight, nickel salt prices are expected to continue rising.
Inventory side, this week the upstream nickel salt smelter inventory index dropped from 5.7 days to 4.4 days, while the downstream precursor producer inventory index declined from 10.6 days to 9.5 days, indicating reduced inventories for both buyers and sellers. Integrated enterprises' inventory index fell from 7.4 days to 7.3 days. Trading dynamics side, the upstream nickel salt smelter Willingness to Sell Sentiment Factor decreased from 1.5 to 1.3, while the downstream precursor producer procurement sentiment factor rose from 3.0 to 3.3, reflecting persistent buyer demand but weaker seller willingness. The integrated enterprise sentiment factor increased from 1.8 to 2.6. (Historical data available in the database.)
Nickel Prices Rose This Week, Nickel Salt Production Costs Rebounded
Cost side, MHP raw material market circulation remained tight, with the MHP payable indicator staying elevated. Nickel prices side, influenced by expectations for US Fed interest rate cuts and US tariffs, LME nickel prices rose this week. Overall, nickel prices increased WoW, pushing up nickel salt production spot costs WoW. As of Friday, the profit margins stood at -1.4% for MHP, -2.2% for crude slag, -3.5% for nickel briquette, and 2.9% for high-grade nickel matte.
