BEIJING- Nickel prices fell on Tuesday after Indonesia said it is working to approve more mining quotas, which are expected to help ease tight ore supply in the world’s top producer of the metal.
Three-month nickel on the London Metal Exchange (LME) dropped 0.6 percent to $17,060 per metric ton.
The most-traded March nickel contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) was down 1.5 percent at 132,430 yuan ($18,397.40) per ton.
Prices were boosted last week by fears of new sanctions against Russian metal by the United States and the slowdown in mining quota issuance in Indonesia that led to ore supply tightness.
However, the package of sanctions imposed on Russia on Friday did not include metals.
On Monday, an official at Indonesia’s mining ministry said it issued approvals for mining quotas for 145 million tons of nickel ore and 14 million tons of bauxite, as it works to address delays in the approval process.
LME aluminum gained 0.6 percent at $2,193.50 per ton, copper advanced 0.5 percent to $26,210, zinc nudged 0.2 percent higher at $2,428.50. Lead dipped 0.1 percent to $2,094, and tin rose 0.5 percent at $26,210. – Reuters
