Superalloy prices increased by a penny across all grades on Thursday following the volatility on LME Nickel during the week.
The weekly Davis Index for Hastelloy C rose by 1¢/lb to $6.38/lb for single truckload delivered processor yard and was up for Hastelloy X at $4.60/lb delivered.
Inconel 600 grew by a penny to $5.93/lb and Inconel 601 increased to $4.70/lb delivered processor yard. Inconel 617 Vac was also up by 1¢/lb to $4.09/lb delivered processor yard and Inconel 625 Vac also increased to $5.79/lb delivered. The index for Inconel 718 Vac inched up to $4.41/lb delivered processor yard.
The official LME Nickel cash contract closed Thursday at $18,476/mt, down by $1,064/mt from $19,540/mt on Aug12.
Superalloy prices trended up slightly this week due to the volatility in LME Nickel prices. The latter had witnessed marked increases last week but began to decline significantly starting Aug 16. The fluctuations have made the processors cautious with superalloy prices expected to drop in tandem with waning stainless steel prices given the weakness in demand outlook for September.