This turning point in the nickel industry has triggered a few things, not least, a blame game.
Some commentators have been quick to point to China, the world’s biggest producer and consumer of several of these green technology minerals, as well as its nickel protégé Indonesia for Australia’s nickel woes.
The argument is that China is trying to hurt global prices because it can. It has “monopolistic” dominance over the production of these special minerals, In nickel’s case, China and Indonesia – where there is much Chinese investment in the latter – have flooded the market with too much nickel, crimping competition.
The surge in nickel supplies is true, but it is an economic outcome rather than a geopolitical one and the factors are multifaceted, not just China-centric.
For starters, China fully…
