China to be world's largest nickel user

China to be world's largest nickel user

MONTREAL: China will overtake Japan in the first half of 2005 to become the world's largest consumer of nickel, said Inco Ltd., the world's second-largest producer of the metal that makes stainless steel rustproof.

China is using more stainless steel in construction and manufacturing as its economy expands -- growth reached 9.1 percent in the third quarter from a year earlier. Nickel demand could grow 17 percent a year for the next 11 years, said Scott Hand, the chief executive of Toronto-based Inco.

"China's regulators support capacity expansion in electricity generation, oil extraction and water and transportation infrastructure," Hand said on Monday at a conference in Montreal, according to a transcript on Inco's Web site. "None of this can happen without lots of nickel."

Consumption of stainless steel, which accounts for two-thirds of nickel use, rose in the first nine months by 7 percent in Japan and 10 percent in the U.S. Nickel prices rose to a 14- year high in January amid forecasts demand this year would exceed production. -- Bloomberg