NEW YORK/MUMBAI (Commodity Online): Nickel prices are topping out due to weak Chinese demand, Macquarie said in a research report. Nickel was one of the worst performing metal at the London Metal exchange (LME) in 2011.
After hitting a peak of about $54,000/tonne in 2007, LME nickel currently trades below $22,000/tonne – an almost 60% decline.
"Our feeling is that the nickel price now looks to have neared a peak as Chinese import demand eases and the risks of a correction in the short run are growing, despite a non-Chinese demand recovery”, The Macquarie report said while adding that “We think that the current supply demand balance can support nickel prices in the $18-20,000/tonnes range for this year... but not sustainably above $20,000/tonnes”
For 2012, Nickel has started out positive with benchmark LME prices moving up from $18500/tonne to near $22,000/tonne. MCX nickel has meanwhile gained around 6% for the year till date.
