F = S e^((r - q + u)T), where r is the interest rate, q is income and u is storage.
The forward price is not a forecast. It is fixed by no-arbitrage: a dealer can buy the asset today, finance it and hold it to delivery. That replication determines the price, and anyone's opinion about the future is irrelevant to it.
Counter-intuitive consequence: for an index with dividend yield above the interest rate, the forward trades below spot. Forwards are not always higher.