The most severe for scrap yard dealers is always 'cargo stagnation '. This is only natural, as sales cannot be made without shipping raw scrap. Stainless steel manufacturers in the Kanto region had already started this stagnation on 13 January, but has now decided to extend it by the end of the month. This is a very severe measures for the suppliers to the manufacturer.
 
On the other hand, another company (only Nittetsu Stainless Steel) has announced to scrap suppliers that it will further reduce the unit price of 304 stainless steel scrap by 10 yen/kg from the 17th.

There are different views as to where the 10-yen reduction will come from, but the most orthodox pattern seems to be from a high rate of 215 yen to 205 yen. Export shippers may also see this 10-yen reduction and move from the initial 5 yen to 10-yen reduction.

(Related article) SUSscrap MarketWatch 2023#3 Ni falls and Cr slightly high

The rapid appreciation of yen (depreciation of USD) may have had an impact, but the current LME nickel market price (around USD 23,000) still indicates that the Ni valuation of 304 scrap is extremely low at around 50%. This is because there is a clear drop in demand for raw materials, as evidenced by the additional production cut at NITTETSU STAINLESS, but even so, JSP, which is affiliated with NITTETSU, has so far not stopped cargoes and has reduced its purchase limit by 30% in order to protect suppliers and distributors.

LME nickel market price ($/t) and exchange rate (yen-USD TTS)

（IRUNIVERSE YT , translated by MK）

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