Strong Price of Stainless Steel Sheet in Tokyo

The market price of stainless steel sheet is strong for both nickel and chrome series products in Tokyo. The price is around 370,000 yen per tonne for base sized SUS304 and around 210,000 yen per tonne for base sized SUS430. Anticipation is increasing for higher prices in the market. However, dealers are concerned that nickel price may plunge down after the recent remarkable increase. Consequently the dealers are feeling high risks for having surplus inventory.Nickel price at London Metal Exchange was US$ 15.3 per pound on August 25. The monthly averaged price would become over US$ 14 if the price keeps the level through this week. Japanese stainless steel makers seem to raise their selling prices for distributors next month.Demand keeps active for both nickel and chrome series products. The orders are especially increasing for chrome series products when the users seem to shift from nickel series to chrome series products. The demand could expand more for chrome series.Stainless steel sheet inventory was 101,872 tonnes at Japanese stainless steel coil centers and the inventory to shipment ratio was 1.65 months of low level recently, according to Japan Stainless Coil Center Industry Association. The market price is expected to maintain the strong tone and to exceed 400,000 yen per tonne for nickel series.