SMM Weekly Stainless Steel Futures Review — week of August 10–14, 2026. Chinese stainless steel futures fell for a fourth straight week, settling at RMB 14,245/mt (about $2,114/mt) on August 14.

On its Q1 FY27 earnings call on August 4, India's Jindal Stainless (JSL) said its Indonesian RKEF nickel pig iron business remained EBITDA-positive for a second consecutive quarter, though management stressed the business is inherently volatile given nickel price swings and that its primary purpose is securing raw material availability rather than earnings. The comment came in response to an analyst question on Indonesia's revised nickel ore benchmark pricing and its margin impact. MD Abhyuday Jindal called peer moves into Indonesia a welcome development, citing SAIL's MoU with an Indonesian state entity for its Salem plant and POSCO's similar investment, arguing they validate JSL's own move years earlier given Indonesia's repeated signals on restricting nickel ore and NPI exports.

SMM Weekly Stainless Steel Futures Review — week of July 27 – July 31, 2026. Conflicting RKAB supplementary quota signals and a hawkish Fed swing the benchmark contract to a RMB 30/mt gain in the week of August 3–7.

[SMM Stainless Steel Daily Review] Indonesian Nickel Ore Quota News Hits Futures, Stainless Steel Futures and Spot Prices Pull Back in Tandem According to an SMM report on Aug 6, SS futures trended downward and hit bottom. The SHFE nickel and SS futures dropped together, impacted by news of additional nickel ore quotas under Indonesia's RKAB. As of the midday close, the most-traded SS futures contract settled at 14,380 yuan/mt. In the spot market, the SS futures' successive declines intensified the wait-and-see sentiment in the industry. Although traders generally lowered their quotes in line with futures, inquiries remained sluggish, and transactions weakened further. SS most-traded futures contract. At 10:15 a.m., SS2609 was reported at 14,465 yuan/mt, down 15 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. Spot premiums for 304/2B material in the Wuxi area were in the 405-855 yuan/mt range. In the spot market, the average price of cold-rolled 201/2B coil in Wuxi held stable. For cold-rolled unedged 304/2B coil, the average price in Wuxi fell 75 yuan/mt, while that in Foshan fell 50 yuan/mt. Cold-rolled 316L/2B coil prices in Wuxi were flat. Quotes for hot-rolled 316L/NO.1 coil in Wuxi were unchanged. Cold-rolled 430/2B coil prices in both Wuxi and Foshan were steady. This week, macro sentiment shifted bearish, dominating metal market trends, and stainless steel futures consolidated on a subdued note overall. The US Fed kept interest rates unchanged as expected at its meeting this week, but its overall stance was hawkish. Commodity valuations generally came under pressure, and the nonferrous metals sector weakened collectively. Dragged by the spillover effect of macro headwinds, SS futures followed suit and consolidated on a subdued note, with the center of the futures moving lower. The overall market...

[SMM Stainless Steel Daily Review] SS Futures Retreat after Rapid Rise; Spot Stainless Steel Trades Cool Down According to SMM on August 5, SS futures generally pulled back, ending yesterday's shot up, and followed SHFE nickel to slump sharply. As of close, the most-traded SS contract settled at 14,475 yuan/mt. In the spot market, dragged by the renewed decline in SS futures, trading sentiment weakened notably, and traders lowered their quotes. Under the sentiment of rushing to buy amid continuous price rise and holding back amid price downturn, transactions turned visibly quiet. The most-traded SS futures contract: at 10:15 am, SS2609 was at 14,480 yuan/mt, down 390 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. Spot premiums for 304/2B in Wuxi were in the range of 490-890 yuan/mt. In the spot market, the average price for cold-rolled 201/2B coil in Wuxi held steady; for cold-rolled 304/2B coil with raw edges, the average price in Wuxi fell by 75 yuan/mt, and in Foshan also fell by 75 yuan/mt; the price for cold-rolled 316L/2B coil in Wuxi was flat; for hot-rolled 316L/NO.1 coil, quotes in Wuxi were unchanged; and cold-rolled 430/2B coil in both Wuxi and Foshan remained flat. This week, macro sentiment turned bearish, dominating metals market trends, and stainless steel futures consolidated on a subdued note under overall pressure. The US Fed's interest rate meeting this week kept rates unchanged as expected, but the overall stance was hawkish, weighing on commodity valuations broadly, and the nonferrous metals sector weakened collectively. Affected by the transmission of macro headwinds, SS futures consolidated on a subdued note in tandem, with the center of futures moving lower and overall market trading sentiment cautious. Spot and inventory side, futures...

[SMM Stainless Steel Daily Review] SS Futures Center Moves Up, Spot Stainless Steel Market Sentiment Recovers According to SMM news on August 4, SS futures shot up and probed higher overall. Near the close of the night session, driven by fund operations, SHFE nickel and SS futures shot up quickly. Although SS pulled back briefly at the morning open, it had risen significantly overall. At the close, the most-traded SS contract settled at 14,470 yuan/mt. Spot market, buoyed by the rally in SS futures, traders for stainless steel agents raised their quotes even as steel mill spot guidance prices held steady. Market activity picked up and inquiry and transaction performance was moderate. The most-traded SS futures contract: at 10:15 AM, SS2609 was at 14,870 yuan/mt, up 345 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. Spot premiums for 304/2B in Wuxi were in the 200–550 yuan/mt range. In the spot market, average prices: Wuxi cold-rolled 201/2B coil stable; cold-rolled raw edge 304/2B coil (Wuxi up 50 yuan/mt, Foshan up 75 yuan/mt); Wuxi cold-rolled 316L/2B coil flat; hot-rolled 316L/NO.1 coil quote flat in Wuxi; cold-rolled 430/2B coil flat in both Wuxi and Foshan. This week, macro sentiment turned bearish and dominated metals market trends, and stainless steel futures consolidated on a subdued note under overall pressure. The US Fed left interest rates unchanged at its meeting this week as expected, but its overall tone was hawkish. Commodity valuations came under broad pressure, and the nonferrous metals sector weakened across the board. Dragged down by the contagion of macro headwinds, SS futures...