l stainless and EV supply chains. The quota news also landed during a broader base-metals bounce helped by a weaker US dollar.
Why should I care?
For markets: Policy is now part of the nickel thesis.
Nickel isn’t just about battery demand anymore: supply expectations can shift fast when the top producer changes quotas at a single mega-asset. That adds regulatory risk to the usual mix of costs, new mines, and EV adoption. And if Indonesia keeps treating ~$18,000 a ton as a pain threshold, rallies may hit a self-imposed ceiling more often than in metals with fewer policy levers.
The bigger picture: Indonesia is managing the EV chain from the ground up.
Indonesia wants more value added at home, steering ore into domestic processing to build a battery-materials hub. Quotas help it balance two goals – supporting miners while protecting downstream industries like stainless steel and EV components from price spikes. At the same time, the dollar-driven pop in other metals is a reminder that macro forces can amplify – or mute – supply shocks.