On March 9, 2022 “The Monty Heat Treat News” had a mention about the astonishing rise in the price of spot nickel which we predicted would lead to a massive jump in the price of new alloy components and fixtures for the heat treatment industry. Two days later we were reporting that alloy items such as fixtures, radiant tubes and cast belts had indeed jumped by 30%-where do we stand today?

Our best indication is shown in the graph below which indicates the price of spot nickel over the course of the past year. What you can see is a slow but steady increase in the price for a year, followed by an enormous spike just weeks ago followed by a dramatic plunge leaving the price roughly twice where it was just a couple of months ago.

And where do we go from here? Well it is anybody’s guess but it would appear to be a given that for a number of reasons nickel demand will be increasing for the next number of years which will put upward pressure on pricing but by how much pressure is the question-your guess is as good as ours.

“MARCH 14, 2022; Alloy Furnace Components Jump 30% in Cost Almost Overnight; March 9, 2022 “The Monty Heat Treat News” had an item about the astounding jump for spot nickel pricing which we predicted would result in substantial price increases for all alloy items required by the heat treat industry-base trays, fixtures, belts fans and radiant tubes to name a few https://themonty.com/nickel-price-skyrockets-alloy-components-set-for-major-price-increases/

Sure enough literally within 2 days of the increase in spot nickel pricing furnace builders and heat treaters were telling us about substantial price increases from their alloy suppliers-typically in the range of 30%.

Obviously if you need alloy you need alloy and there are extremely limited options as far as alternatives go so the question becomes; buy now or wait and see what happens in the future?”

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