SHANGHAI: Shanghai nickel jumped more than 4 percent on Monday, tracking a move in London after China said it would cut duties on some steel exports, which raised expectations for demand.
London Metal Exchange nickel rose 0.4 percent to $11,625 a tonne following a 3.8 percent rally on Friday. China will cut export taxes on some steel products and fertilisers and ditch those for sales abroad of steel wire, rod and bars from Jan. 1, the Ministry of Finance said on Friday, in a series of measures that could boost shipments. Helping to trim a glut of stockpiles in exchange, the global deficit for refined nickel widened to 65,700 tonnes in the first nine months of the year, from 47,400 tonnes, in the same period of 2016, data from the International Nickel Study Group showed.
The news helped to push up steelmaking raw materials prices. Dalian iron ore futures surged 7.1 percent. LME copper was steady at $6,888.50 a tone after rising 1.4 percent on Friday when it peaked at $6,913, the highest since late November. Shanghai Futures Exchange copper climbed 1.5 percent to 53,560 yuan. Hedge funds and money managers cut their net long position in COMEX copper contracts in the week to Dec.
New home prices in China extended another month of steady growth in November, after picking up slightly in October, shrugging off a range of government measures to rein in an overheated property market as price gains in smaller cities widened.
Japan’s export growth accelerated in November to mark a full year of annual gains, underscoring the strength of external demand that has led the economy to its second-longest run of postwar growth.
Asian shares edged up, with sentiment boosted by expectations U.S. lawmakers will pass a long-awaited tax bill this week, while Chinese stocks were soggy on concerns about liquidity and tighter regulations in the world’s second largest economy. The dollar held modest gains against its peers, having received a lift after U.S. tax reform efforts moved another step closer to ratification.
