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Russian mining giant Norilsk Nickel expects uncertain times ahead for nickel and copper markets as the coronavirus outbreak continues to disrupt both demand and supply. It said "The Chinese government restrictions on mobility, extended work holidays and mandatory closures have imposed a significant disruption to the supply chain and already had a significant impact on end consumption. The extent of demand disruption makes it unlikely that the first-quarter losses can be fully recouped in the second and third quarters of 2020, as the supply are also yet to recover as many workers have yet to return to mines and smelters."
Nornickel said it had expected to see a recovery in copper demand due to an increase in infrastructure investment in China and the rollout of next-generation 5G telecom networks. It said However the outbreak of the virus, which has infected tens of thousands of people in China and beyond and triggered alarm around the world, could undermine the company's copper demand assumptions.”
It said “The ramp-up of new nickel pig iron capacity in Indonesia could be also delayed as Chinese workers involved in the construction of NPI smelters and high pressure acid leaching facilities there have been put in quarantine. It expects nickel market to be balanced in 2020 as Indonesia continues ramping up and commissioning of its NPI projects, which are expected to bring additional 150,000 tonnes of nickel units. Although the Indonesian export ban will reduce the availability of ore feed to Chinese NPI smelters, ore inventories of 14 million tonnes accumulated in the country and a potential increase of ore supply from the Philippines should mitigate this negative effect in the short term.”