Nickel has had a tumultuous year. In the view of economists at ING, the short-term outlook remains bearish amid a deteriorating macro picture and sustained market surplus.

Nickel surplus to build

“We forecast Nickel prices to remain under pressure in the short term as a surplus in the market builds, however, the tightness in the class 1 market is likely to offer some support.”

“We see prices hovering between $20,000/t and $20,500/t over the first two quarters of 2023 before gradually increasing to $21,000/t in 3Q and $22,000/t in 4Q as the global growth outlook starts to improve.”