In brief
- About two thirds of the nickel consumed worldwide goes into making stainless steel; the rest goes into special alloys, plating and batteries.
- In 2025 mines produced about 3.9 million tonnes of nickel: Indonesia alone about 2.6 million, two thirds of the total (USGS).
- The LME Nickel contract (code NI) covers only high-purity primary nickel, at least 99.80% (“Class 1”), in 6-tonne lots.
- According to the International Nickel Study Group, the world market has been in surplus since 2022, and prices have fallen from that year's highs.
- On 8 March 2022 the LME suspended trading and cancelled that morning's trades, after the price had topped 100,000 dollars: in the archive of official prices the high is still that of 16 May 2007, 54,200 dollars.
What nickel is: Class 1 and Class 2
Nickel is a silvery, hard metal, resistant to corrosion and to high temperatures. Added to steel together with chromium, it makes it stainless; in superalloys it withstands the temperatures of turbines; in lithium-ion batteries it increases the energy stored by the cathode.
The market distinguishes two families of products. “Class 1” is almost pure nickel, at least 99.80%, in cathodes, briquettes, pellets or powder: it is used in special alloys, plating and batteries, and it is the nickel deliverable on the LME. “Class 2” covers products with less nickel, such as ferronickel and nickel pig iron, used mainly in stainless steels. Then there are intermediate products, such as matte and mixed hydroxide precipitate (MHP), which are refined for batteries.
That is why the LME price, which is a Class 1 price, does not tell the whole story of the market on its own: a growing share of the world's nickel goes through products that have their own prices.
Who produces and who uses nickel
According to the US Geological Survey's Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026, mines produced about 3.9 million tonnes of nickel in 2025, 5% more than in 2024. Indonesia produced about 2.6 million, two thirds of the total, up 13%; far behind come the Philippines (270,000 tonnes, down 24%), Russia, Canada, New Caledonia and China.
The Indonesian boom stems from a policy choice: since 2020 the country has banned exports of raw ore and has attracted huge investment to process it locally, into nickel pig iron for stainless steel and into intermediate products for batteries. Meanwhile, with prices low, several mines in Australia have been placed on care and maintenance, and 2025 output there collapsed by 54% (USGS).
On the consumption side, according to the Nickel Institute about two thirds of nickel goes into stainless steels; the rest goes into special alloys for the chemical, energy and aerospace industries, into plating and into electric vehicle batteries, where, however, a growing share of cars uses nickel-free chemistries.
The LME nickel contract
The world reference price for Class 1 nickel is set on the London Metal Exchange, on the LME Nickel contract. Compared with copper, aluminium, zinc and lead it has two peculiarities: the lot is only 6 tonnes, because nickel is worth much more per tonne, and the minimum price fluctuation is 5 dollars, as for tin.
The main terms of the contract:
| Contract code | NI |
|---|---|
| Metal | primary nickel, minimum purity 99.80% |
| Quality | conforming to the ASTM B39-79 (2023) standard, minimum 99.80%, or GB/T 6516-2010 (grade Ni9990) |
| Shape | cathodes (full plate or cut), pellets, briquettes and rounds |
| Lot size | 6 tonnes; each warrant 6 t with a tolerance of ±2% |
| Price quotation | US dollars per tonne; also clearable in yen, sterling and euro |
| Prompt dates | daily out to 3 months, weekly from 3 to 6 months, monthly from 7 to 63 months |
| Minimum price fluctuation | 5 dollars per tonne on the Ring and LMEselect; 0.01 dollars for carries and on the inter-office market |
| Last trading day | until the close of the first Ring on the day before the prompt date |
| Settlement | physical delivery: warrants for metal of LME-approved brands stored in approved warehouses |
| Trading venues | Ring (open outcry), LMEselect (electronic) and the inter-office telephone market |
Source: LME, LME Nickel contract specifications, read on 29 September 2026.
March 2022: the LME nickel crisis
In the days after the invasion of Ukraine, amid fears for Russian supply, nickel rose rapidly. On 7 March 2022 the official Cash price reached 42,995 dollars per tonne; on the morning of 8 March the forced closing of huge short positions pushed trading above 100,000 dollars within a few hours.
The LME suspended the nickel market and cancelled the trades executed that morning; trading resumed on 16 March, with daily price limits. Legal actions followed, which the LME reports on its own website.
For nickel buyers the lesson is practical: the exchange price is a solid reference but not an infallible one, and contracts should provide for what happens if the reference is missing or suspended.
What drives the nickel price
Indonesia. Indonesian supply, which has grown much faster than demand, has been the main driver of prices in recent years: according to the International Nickel Study Group, cited by the USGS, the world market has been in surplus since 2022, by 98,500 tonnes that year, 170,000 in 2023, 182,000 in 2024 and 189,000 in the first nine months of 2025. The mining quotas set by the government in Jakarta also matter.
Stainless steel and batteries. Stainless steel production, above all in China, drives consumption; batteries add demand, but the spread of nickel-free chemistries has reduced its expected growth.
Class 1 and Class 2. The price differences between pure nickel, nickel pig iron and intermediate products show where the tension in the market lies; when the LME approved new deliverable brands, more metal was able to enter its warehouses.
Stocks, the dollar and volatility. LME stocks and the forward curve, the dollar and the relatively small size of the market make nickel more volatile than copper and aluminium.
The recent history of the nickel price
The official LME price (Official Cash, ask side) at key moments of the last twenty years, from the FT Mercati archive, in dollars per tonne:
Nickel on FT Mercati
Every day we publish on the site the official LME nickel price of the previous session, in dollars and euros, with a chart of recent sessions; for the Italian market there is also the Nickel Milan index. Under LME rules, the price of the current session is reserved for users of authorised data vendors.
FT Mercati subscribers follow Cash, three-month and the other prompt dates, closing prices and stocks in LME warehouses in real time, with history and alerts on the web and in the app. The service can be tried for free.
Frequently asked questions
What is the nickel price today?
On the FT Mercati site you will find, every day, the official LME nickel price of the previous session, in dollars and euros per tonne. The price of the current session, in real time, is reserved for subscribers: the LME grants it only to users of authorised data vendors.
What is the difference between Class 1 and Class 2 nickel?
Class 1 is almost pure nickel, at least 99.80%, in cathodes, briquettes or pellets: it is used in special alloys, plating and batteries, and it is the nickel deliverable on the LME. Class 2 covers ferronickel and nickel pig iron, which contain less nickel and are used mainly in stainless steel.
Why is the LME nickel lot 6 tonnes?
Because nickel is worth a lot per tonne: a smaller lot keeps the value of a contract comparable with that of the other metals. The minimum price fluctuation is 5 dollars per tonne and prompt dates run out to 63 months.
What happened to nickel in March 2022?
On 8 March 2022 the forced closing of large short positions drove the price above 100,000 dollars within a few hours. The LME suspended the market, cancelled that morning's trades and, when trading resumed on 16 March, introduced daily price limits.
Why did the nickel price fall after 2022?
Mainly because Indonesian production grew faster than demand: according to the International Nickel Study Group the market has been in surplus since 2022. The average of official LME prices in 2025 was 15,160 dollars, against 25,605 in 2022.
What was the highest nickel price?
In the FT Mercati archive of official LME prices, which starts in 1989, the highest value is 54,200 dollars per tonne, on 16 May 2007. The prices above 100,000 dollars of 8 March 2022 are not official prices: those trades were cancelled.
Sources
References for this guide. Historical prices come from the FT Mercati archive of official LME prices (Official Cash, ask side).
- LME — LME Nickel, contract specifications
- USGS — Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Nickel
- Nickel Institute — Stainless steel: the role of nickel
This guide is market information, not financial or investment advice: for your company's decisions, consult your advisors.