Energy Update US gasoline consumption to continue growing strongly Fuel consumption by US motorists is set to grow strongly again this year, despite a shaky start, as robust employment growth encourages more people to drive and demand for less fuel-efficient trucks... 8th April 2016 · 1 min read
Precious Metals Update Gold’s rally far from over Despite last week’s fall in the wake of strong US economic data out, we think that gold’s rally this year is far from being over. In particular, we expect building inflationary pressures in the US to... 8th April 2016 · 1 min read
Commodities Update Strong US home building to underpin the price of lumber A pick up in US single-family home building should continue to support the price of US lumber this year even if the Canadian dollar gives back some ground against the greenback. 7th April 2016 · 1 min read
Industrial Metals Update Zinc demand looks promising The price of zinc has rallied strongly, and by more than other metals, reflecting the prospect of lower supply. But we think that the demand outlook is also positive, which will add further support to... 7th April 2016 · 1 min read
Commodities Update Agriculturals benefit from a weak dollar, but will it last? It has been a good month for agriculturals, with the S&P GSCI agriculture index rising by a little under 4% since the start of March. This reverses the downward trend in January and February... 5th April 2016 · 1 min read
Energy Update What are the chances of a deal in Doha to freeze oil output? Comments from a leading Saudi Arabian official on Friday have led markets to reassess the prospect of a deal being done in Doha later this month to freeze OPEC and Russian oil production. In our view... 4th April 2016 · 1 min read
Commodities Update Surge in US acreage doesn’t bode well for corn prices With sizeable US inventories and the likelihood of large US corn and soybean plantings this year, we remain of the view that prices of grains and soybeans are likely to fall over the course of the... 1st April 2016 · 1 min read
Commodities Update China data finally starting to turn? The jump in China’s two manufacturing PMIs in March suggest that policy stimulus is starting to work, although these reports alone only validate the earlier rally in industrial commodity prices rather... 1st April 2016 · 1 min read
Precious Metals Update Rhodium price to benefit from tighter fundamentals The price of rhodium is set to recover over the next couple of years as (i) cuts to capital expenditure in South Africa start to take their toll on production and (ii) usage of the metal in... 31st March 2016 · 1 min read
Commodities Update How will the reform of the EU sugar regime affect world prices? The European Union (EU) sugar regime governs the production, sale and trade in sugar within the region. In 2017, the regime will be liberalised: production quotas will be abolished and guaranteed... 31st March 2016 · 1 min read
Commodities Update US Weekly Petroleum Status Report US crude oil inventories hit a new record for the seventh consecutive time last week, despite a surge in inputs to refineries, a further drop in US oil production and lower imports. On the other hand... 30th March 2016 · 1 min read
Energy Update LNG prices to continue to struggle this year The balance of power in the liquefied natural gas (LNG) marketplace has shifted to the consumer given the ongoing ramp-up in supply and the fall in cost of competing fuels. Although spot LNG prices... 30th March 2016 · 1 min read
Industrial Metals Update Fundamentals will eventually underpin copper price rise The rally in copper prices since mid-January has been flattered by a weaker dollar and improved investor sentiment. However, we think a more sustainable recovery in the price will happen later in the... 29th March 2016 · 1 min read
Industrial Metals Update China’s REE exports prove resilient The individual breakdown of China’s total rare earth element (REE) exports shows that exports of most REEs continued to grow strongly in the first two months of this year. 29th March 2016 · 1 min read
Commodities Update Key commodity prices set for further gains Followers of our relatively upbeat research since January may not be surprised to hear that we expect many commodity prices to rally further. (See our quarterly Commodities Analyst, “Oil to lead a... 23rd March 2016 · 1 min read
Commodities Update Palm oil prices to fall back later in the year With the negative effects of El Niño on palm oil production likely to continue in the coming months, we have raised our near-term price forecast. But as output returns to normal and competition from... 23rd March 2016 · 1 min read
