From the end of September, new EU sanctions against Russian steel products will come into force – this time against steel and iron precursors in finished products. The latest US labour market data point to easing and Asian nickel prices rose again.
The latest US labour market data for August 2023 point to an easing of the situation, according to an assessment by Deutsche Bank. Even though the unemployment rate rose slightly by 0.3 percentage points, it is still at a very low level of 3.8% and close to full employment. The increase in the newly registered labour force by about 500,000, which raised the labour force participation rate to 62.8%, can also be seen as positive. These should be gratefully received by the labour market in the near future.
The market also reacted positively to the US jobs data, with the LME Nickel, for example, rising by almost 2% on Friday. SHFE nickel also rose by about 3% today (Monday).
