The price of nickel rose to a 15-month high on the back of information about Indonesia’s tightening control over the metal’s mining volumes.
The price of nickel with delivery in three months rose 6.1 percent to $18,045 a tonne in Tuesday’s trading, the highest since 7 October 2024.
“Indonesia’s increasing control over production volumes due to the slower quota approval process and its planned reduction in 2026 is a reasonably effective driver of price increases,” says ING analyst Eva Manti.
She notes, however, that the nickel price increase is unlikely to be sustainable, as the market is still expected to be significantly oversupplied in 2026.
The day before, the Indonesian edition of Bisnis.com reported that the country’s authorities allowed mining companies to temporarily focus on the previously approved quotas for mining the metal for 2026, while new quotas are under consideration.
Nickel is used in the production of stainless steel, for nickel plating. Nickel is also used in the production of batteries, in powder metallurgy and in chemicals.