WEEKLY: China NPI prices rally as Indonesia's Customs turmoil impacts exports

Chinese prices of high-grade nickel pig iron (NPI) moved higher this past week on market concerns that Indonesia's new Customs regulations relating to rare earth elements would delay shipments of the ferroalloy and exacerbate already tight supply conditions in China, according to Mysteel's latest survey results.

On July 31, Mysteel assessed the price of high-grade NPI with 7-13% nickel content in East China's Jiangsu province at Yuan 1,155/mtu ($171/mtu) including delivery and tax, higher by Yuan 10/mtu from the previous week. Tight NPI availability in the spot market continued to buoy prices. Market sentiment was further