China's nickel market showed mixed signals during the week ending July 20, 2026, with supply-side dynamics playing a central role in shaping price direction across different segments of the market, according to Mysteel's weekly review. In the seaborne ore market, Philippine medium-to-high grade nickel ore prices remained low and stable. CIF Lianyungang offers for 1.3% grade ore were quoted at US $47 per wet metric tonne, while 1.4% grade ore stood at US $57 per wet metric tonne, with prices holding steady throughout the week.
In the Indonesian domestic ore market, continued downward adjustments in the HMA (Harga Mineral Acuan) reference price pushed the price centre further lower. The benchmark price for nickel saprolite ore graded at Ni 1.6% fell to US $63.06 per wet metric tonne, while domestic ore premiums had approached their floor levels. On the regulatory front, Indonesia's Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) clarified that RKAB supplementary quotas would be allocated exclusively to address operational needs of smelters facing supply shortages and would not be meaningfully increased.
This policy clarification effectively dispelled earlier market expectations of a looser supply environment. The failure of those expectations to materialise, combined with growing anticipation of tightening supply on the mining side, provided underlying support for nickel prices. In the battery materials segment, the midpoint price for battery-grade nickel sulfate crystals was reported at Yuan 31,850 per tonne, representing an increase of Yuan 50 from the previous week.
Source: Mysteel, July 20, 2026.
Source: mysteel.net