The London Metal Exchange (LME) nickel futures price continued to rise yesterday (July 23), approaching the US$15,600/ton level.

Easing trade tensions, a continued weakening US dollar, and a significant drop in LME nickel inventories drove the nickel price to stabilize, and the price hit a nearly two-month high since May 27.

The nickel futures price closed at US$15,572/ton yesterday, up by US$44. The price has risen for five days in a row, with a total price increase of US$547, or 3.6%, over this period. The price has risen by US$357 since this month, a 2.3% growth.

At the same time, the LME's monitored inventory fell sharply by 2,220 tons to 205,872 tons.

Market participants said that despite these factors supporting the nickel price, China's demand is still weak recently, with stainless steel futures turning weak. Therefore, the short-term nickel prices are expected to weakly fluctuate.