The London Metal Exchange (LME) nickel price on December 7 hiked by US$2,170/ton and closed at US$31,441/ton. Meanwhile, the nickel spot price soared by US$2,139/ton to US$31,281/ton.

At the same time, the nickel inventory at LME decreased by 588 tons to 53,652 tons.

In December, the accumulated increase in nickel prices totaled US$4,454/ton, a hike of 16.5%. Meanwhile, the average nickel price was US$29,045/ton, increasing by 13.6% compared to the average price in November.

Sources said that Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (ICE) considered buying LME again, which might make the nickel crisis in March reoccur. Also, Indonesia planned to resume nickel ore exports and levy duty, so the nickel price went up significantly.