SINGAPORE, Aug 30 (Reuters) - Shanghai nickel prices hit a record high on Friday, as a waste spill at a nickel plant in Papua New Guinea sparked fear of some supply shortage.
Shanghai Futures Exchange’s (ShFE) most-traded nickel contract jumped as much as 2.6% to a record 130,100 yuan ($18,342.54) a tonne, while London nickel rose 0.2%, after hitting a three-week high in the previous session.
Metallurgical Corp of China’s Ramu battery nickel processing plant is facing compensation claims and possibly closure after it spilled mine waste into a Papua New Guinea’s bay, the head of the country’s minerals authority said.
“The (Ramu) operation produces approximately 35,000 tonnes of nickel, equivalent to 23% of the metal held in London Metal Exchange inventories,” said ANZ in a note.
FUNDAMENTALS
* NICKEL SPREAD: The premium for cash nickel over the three-month contract on the London Metal Exchange (LME) MNI0-3 has spiked to a 10-year high of $99 a tonne, signalling tight nearby supply. One party holds 50% to 80% of available LME inventories. <0#LME-WHL>
* NICKEL STOCKS: Nickel inventories in LME-approved warehouses MNISTX-TOTAL have been increasing slightly in August, but are hovering around a six-year low level, while ShFE nickel stocks rose to their highest since June 2018 last week. SNI-TOTAL-W
* NICKEL/TIN: ShFE nickel on Friday surpassed tin prices for the first time since both contracts were launched in 2015, after LME nickel prices topped tin on Tuesday.
* CHINA: Factory activity in China is expected to have contracted for the fourth straight month in August, a Reuters poll showed, as the United States ratcheted up trade pressure and domestic demand remained sluggish.
* TRADE TALKS: The United States and China gave signs on Thursday that they will resume trade talks as the two economic superpowers discussed the next round of in-person negotiations in September.
* JIANGXI: China’s Jiangxi Copper Co produced 749,300 tonnes of refined copper cathode in January-June, up 3.5% from a year earlier, and 102,000 tonnes of copper concentrate during the period, up 0.2% year-on-year.
* PRICES: LME copper eased 0.2%, aluminium rose 0.2%, lead fell 0.2% while Shanghai copper rose 0.3%, lead eased 0.1% and tin edged up 0.1%.
* ZINC: Zinc prices on both the LME and ShFE were on track for their fifth straight monthly fall, as the U.S.-China prolonged trade war weighed on demand outlook.
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MARKETS NEWS
* Asian shares rose as China struck a hopeful tone on trade with the United States but continued fears about a global growth slowdown, or even a recession, capped sharp rallies.
DATA/EVENTS AHEAD (GMT)
0600 UK Nationwide house price m/m Aug
0600 UK Nationwide house price y/y Aug
0645 France CPI (EU Norm) Prelim y/y Aug
0900 Euro zone HICP Flash y/y Aug
0900 Euro zone HICP-X F&E Flash y/y Aug
0900 Euro zone Unemployment Rate July
1200 India GDP Quarterly y/y Q1
1230 US Consumption, adjusted m/m July
1400 US U Mich Sentiment Final Aug
PRICES
Three month LME copper
Most active ShFE copper
Three month LME aluminium
Most active ShFE aluminium
Three month LME zinc
Most active ShFE zinc
Three month LME lead
Most active ShFE lead
Three month LME nickel
Most active ShFE nickel
Three month LME tin
Most active ShFE tin
ARBS ($1 = 7.0928 Chinese yuan renminbi) (Reporting by Mai Nguyen; Editing by Rashmi Aich)
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