WEEKLY: China's NPI prices rise further on Indonesian supply squeeze

Prices of high-grade nickel pig iron (NPI) in China's domestic spot markets continued on their upward tack this week, driven primarily by a worsening supply crunch for nickel ore from Indonesia, the key supply source, according to the most recent Mysteel survey results.

On January 30, Mysteel assessed the price of high-grade NPI with 7-13% nickel content in East China's Jiangsu province at Yuan 1,075/mtu ($155/mtu) including delivery and tax, higher by Yuan 25/mtu from the previous week. Bolstering the price is a severe tightening of nickel ore shipments from Indonesia. Market sources