It was reported that the main suppliers in Indonesia had slowed down their production. While the demand for stainless steel continued to increase, the global nickel supply decreased dramatically, leading to price increases.

According to the senior commodities consultant at Macquarie Capital Jim Lennon, he said that the current price of ferronickel hits new record low, reaching US$16,000/ton by the end of this year, and might increase to US$18,000/ton next year.

The demand for stainless steel was supported by nickel prices, which increased by 9% in the first half of this year. However, as US-China trade disputes continued to heat up, the market worried that the expected annual output of 2.2 million tons of ferronickel might be affected.

The consultant said that the current nickel price had fallen to the bottom, and it was expected that China will relax the credit policy and take measures to promote economic growth for supporting steel demand. However, the growth rate of nickel production will be slow by the end of the year.