LONDON — Nickel prices resumed their freefall on Monday, with the benchmark three-month contract falling 15% to hit another new trading limit.

According to Refinitiv data, it reached $31,380 per ton at the London Metal Exchange when trade opened.

This 145-year old exchange still allows for open outcry trading. It has seen a lot of nickel trading over the past few weeks, including price spikes, technical problems, and suspensions.

Commodity prices rose earlier in the month due to fears about supply from Russia’s invasion Ukraine. There was also a barrage Western sanctions that raised concerns of disruption. Russia is a key producer and exporter of metals and grains and is the world’s third-largest producer of nickel — a key ingredient in stainless steel and a component in lithium-ion batteries.

On March 8, nickel prices more than doubled in a matter of hours. Tsingshan Holding Group of China, one the most important producers in the world, purchased huge quantities to decrease its short positions on the metal.

LME trading was stopped because of the significant price rise. After the shutdown, nickel trading was resumed by the LME on Wednesday. A system error allowed trades to pass below the 5% daily limit. This caused temporary suspension of trading.

LME set a trading range at 8% on Thursday and 12% Friday. The price instantly reached its lowest limit at the beginning of trading in both sessions. Reuters reported Friday that volumes were low and few buyers were willing to pay the LME priceThe Shanghai Futures Exchange had a higher price for, at.

Matthew Chamberlain (CEO of LME) spoke before Wednesday’s open to CNBC’s “SquawkBox Europe”, saying that they were “absolutely conscious of the effect that this has had upon so many people” and that there was a need for them to prevent it from happening again.

Chamberlain stated that the LME “deliberately prioritized stability”, setting relatively tight trading limits for daily trading. However, these may soon be increased if there is a more orderly market.

—CNBC’s Sam Meredith contributed to this article.