• After the price declines during December and early January, Asian stockists believe that with nickel prices showing some signs of reviving, stainless prices could shortly begin to recover.
• In Europe, meanwhile, signs of increased distributor enquiries are also emerging though the absence of end-user orders continues to concern industry participants.
• In North America, 2008 proved to be another weak year for consumption. Mills have curbed output in an attempt to tighten the market, but end-user demand looks set to remain sluggish.