Nickel is on the rise these days. The price of the base metal has recently skyrocketed on the London Metal Exchange (LME), hitting a record.
Nickel prices have doubled since 2007, exceeding $100,000 a metric ton. The market has experienced something of the kind for the first time. Prices went up at the end of last month. Back then, experts already recorded supply shortages, which continue up to now. This caused a snowball effect: supply shortages boosted demand as well as prices, which, in turn, fueled speculation. There is currently no reason to believe there will be any drastic changes. Demand for the base metal is stable as it is used for industrial purposes. Meanwhile, speculators are closing their positions, and demand is exceeding supply in the leasing market. Nickel prices are forecast to appreciate further in the short term.
On March 7th, nickel traded on the London Metal Exchange with a $46,8 increase for the first time since June 2007. Eventually, prices swelled about 3.5 times to $101,350 a metric ton and then pulled back slightly to $85,000 a metric ton. The rise partially came due to sanctions on Russia, a major supplier of nickel (about 30%), which is a key component in lithium-ion battery cells.
