South Korea's Posco (005490.SE) said Monday it will raise the domestic price of its hot-rolled stainless steel products by 8.1% later this month, due to higher nickel prices.

The world's third-largest steelmaker by output will raise its hot-rolled stainless steel price to KRW4.65 million a metric ton starting April 23, from KRW4.30 million, due to a continued rise in nickel prices, said Posco spokeswoman Ko Min-jin.

This will be the fourth time the company has raised stainless steel prices this year.

Posco said it will also raise the price of cold-rolled stainless steel products by 7.7% to KRW4.92 million/ton, from KRW4.57 million.

Hot-rolled stainless steel is mainly used in automobiles, medical equipment and buildings. Nickel is a key material used in stainless steel products.

On March 26, Posco raised the price of hot-rolled steel to KRW4.3 million from KRW3.95 million and that of cold-rolled steel to KRW4.57 million from KRW4.22 million.

The prices of nickel jumped to $52,370/ton on the London Metal Exchange April 5, compared to $14,500 at the start of 2006.