07:49 AM EDT, 04/24/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland says Canada and its allies are weighing taking trade action against China and Indonesia in the nickel market, as the two Asian countries tighten their collective grip in the critical mineral, The Globe and Mail newspaper has reported.

It noted Indonesia has gone from supplying 7% of the global output of nickel to 55% in the past decade, with much of that new production controlled by China-based mining companies with ties to the authoritarian Beijing government.

It also noted the glut of new global supply out of Indonesia has caused the price of the steelmaking and battery metal commodity to plummet by more than 80% from a peak of US$100,000 a tonne to around US$19,100 a tonne.

The report said the crash in the nickel price is putting tremendous pressure on large Western producers. It noted Canada's First Quantum Minerals Ltd. ( FQVLF ) , Switzerland's Glencore PLC and Australia's Wyloo Metals Pty Ltd. in the past few months have closed nickel mines, idled production and issued bleak forecasts.

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