The death toll from a fire at an Indonesian nickel smelter has risen to 18 as of Tuesday from 13 on Sunday, local police said, while operations at the smelter remain suspended as authorities investigate the cause of the incident.

Russian mining and metals giant Nornickel has raised its global nickel surplus estimate for the current year due to lower than expected consumption in the battery sector, the company said in a market report.

Global nickel production will outpace demand to the tune of 239,000 metric tons next year, according to the International Nickel Study Group (INSG).

The global nickel market had a surplus of 11,900 metric tons in May, compared with a surplus of 13,900 tons in the same month last year, data from the International Nickel Study Group (INSG) showed on Tuesday.

The global nickel market had a surplus of 20,500 metric tons in April, compared with a deficit of 2,600 tons in the same month last year, data from the International Nickel Study Group (INSG) showed on June 21.

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In nickel, the global dispersion index fell to 41.8 in May from 43.3 in April despite gains in China. A measure of 50 points indicates that smelters are operating at the average level of the past 12 months.

South Sulawesi Ministry of Finance (Kemenkeu) Representative Head Supendi said that South Sulawesi’s nickel exports to Japan as of April 2023 had reached US$486.7 (US) out of the total exports of US$815 million.