SHANGHAI — Taigang Stainless Steel Group Co. Ltd., China’s largest stainless producer, has increased its December-delivery high-carbon ferrochrome purchase price.

The price is now at 7,000 yuan ($1,123) per tonne, including delivery, for an all-cash payment, up 150 yuan ($24) from November.

Prices from other major stainless steel mills—including Baosteel Group Corp. and Jiuquan Iron & Steel (Group) Co. Ltd.—have also risen.

Baosteel’s prices are up 100 yuan ($16) from the previous month to 7,100 yuan ($1,140) and Jiuquan’s prices are at 6,950 yuan ($1,115) per tonne, up 100 yuan ($16) from the previous month. Both are on an all-cash basis.

"The increase is more than expected, especially in Taigang’s case, as its payment for November was half in cash and half in the form of an acceptance draft. But this time it’s all in cash, so the real raise should be as much as 250 yuan ($40)," a trader in Beijing told AMM sister publication Metal Bulletin.

Spot prices stood at 7,000 to 7,100 yuan ($1,123 to $1,140) per tonne Friday, unchanged from a week earlier.

"Market sentiment improved a lot on these high prices, and some predict the prices will continue to go up in the coming month on falling output of ferrochrome," an analyst from Shanghai said, noting that monthly high-carbon ferrochrome production from major local smelters fell to around 260,000 tonnes.

A version of this article was first published by AMM sister publication Metal Bulletin.