Posted on 10 Apr 2024
The rise in nickel prices during February and March has led Nippon Steel Stainless Steel Corp (NSSC), Japan's largest stainless producer, to raise prices of its austenitic stainless cold-rolled (CR) sheets and medium plates for sales to distributors and service centres this month, the company has announced. However, as chromium prices haven't changed, NSSC is holding its ferritic stainless prices for this month, it said.
According to NSSC's latest price policy, the stainless maker is adding Yen 10,000/tonne ($66/t) to 300 series CR sheets and medium and heavy plates for April, taking the increase since March to Yen 15,000/t. But while last month the company also added Yen 15,000/t to its base prices for both 300 series and 400 series items as reported, it is keeping these unchanged for April.
NSSC's prices comprise an agreed formula-derived component known as 'alloy link', mostly determined by alloy costs and exchange rates, and a 'base' price component covering costs for auxiliary raw materials, equipment, transportation, labour and others.
In its latest policy statement explaining its alloy link increase, NSSC noted that during February-March (the base months for NSSC's alloy price calculations this time), LME nickel prices increased an average of $7.66/lb, from $7.35/lb during January-February. At the same time, the Japanese currency had weakened further to average Yen 150.59=$1, from Yen 149.08 on average during this year's first two months.
On the other hand, chromium prices during February-March remained at US Cents 152/lb, removing the need for NSSC to adjust its alloy link component for ferritic grades this time. However, on March 28 the Japanese stainless mills agreed prices of high-carbon ferrochrome for April-June deliveries to Japan at US Cents 160/lb, higher by 8 cents from the previous period, prompting NSSC to say that it plans to reflect this rise in its ferritic stainless prices from May.
NSSC continues to maintain that market conditions are improving, saying that "a recovery in domestic demand is clearer than before." It quotes data from the Japan Stainless Steel Coil Center Association (JSCA) showing that CR coil sales among JSCA member companies in February reached 50,000 tonnes, higher by 3,300 tonnes from January. "Demand related to home appliances including water heaters is increasing while demand for stainless for the semiconductor sector is also rising," it said.
NSSC never reveals its stainless product list prices, but prices for SUS304 2mm thick CR cut sheet in the spot markets of both Tokyo and Osaka remain at Yen 600,000/t, unchanged since they dropped Yen 10,000/t in January, as reported.
Source:Mysteel Global
