Commodities Weekly Dollar weakness helping to prop up prices It has been a relatively quiet week although the prices of most commodities rose, supported by a further depreciation of the US dollar. The precious metals were the relative underperformers, perhaps... 30th June 2017 · 1 min read
Energy Update Will US shale continue to flood the oil market? US shale production growth is likely to slow sharply towards the end of the year as the recent low prices cap the number of drilling rigs. What’s more, fewer efficiency gains will start to weigh on... 29th June 2017 · 1 min read
Energy Data Response US Weekly Petroleum Status Report Another rise in net imports contributed to a slight increase in crude oil inventories last week. At the same time, gasoline and distillate stocks fell in spite of weak demand for petroleum products. 28th June 2017 · 1 min read
Industrial Metals Update China Industrial Metals Output Monitor (May) After a strong start to 2017, growth in China’s refinery output appears to be slowing. This corroborates broader activity and investment data, which have lost some momentum going into the second... 28th June 2017 · 1 min read
Africa Economics Update South Africa: Mining charter an ominous sign of things to come Revisions to the charter governing South Africa’s mining sector have been opposed by the industry and rattled the markets. In this Watch, we examine the industry’s complaints, explain the political... 28th June 2017 · 1 min read
Commodities Watch How important is Africa for agriculturals? Given Africa’s large size and geographic diversity, most of the world’s key agricultural commodities are produced somewhere on the continent. In this Commodities Watch, we first discuss the importance... 28th June 2017 · 1 min read
Commodities Update Low volatility here to stay Volatility in commodity markets is likely to remain lower than average for the next year. The main exception could be the oil market where any change in tack by OPEC would cause sharp moves in prices. 27th June 2017 · 1 min read
Metals Data Response China and India’s gold imports (May) The latest trade data show gold imports moved in opposing directions in the two largest consumers last month. The fall in China’s gold imports suggests weaker underlying demand, while India’s imports... 26th June 2017 · 1 min read
Metals Watch Copper price to struggle The price of copper has been trading in a fairly narrow range in the last few weeks, but is still significantly higher than at the start of 2016. In this Metals Watch, we discuss the main drivers of... 26th June 2017 · 1 min read
US Economics Weekly Will falling oil prices knock the economy off course? The further drop in oil prices this week, to below $43pb, means that the recovery in mining investment seen in the first half of the year may be at least partly reversed in the second. That said, we... 23rd June 2017 · 1 min read
Commodities Weekly Oil slides on oversupply concerns The price of Brent fell below $45 per barrel this week, reflecting investor concerns about oversupply. In contrast, the prices of most industrial metals rose, despite little in the way of positive... 23rd June 2017 · 1 min read
Emerging Markets Economics Update Winners and losers from the latest drop in oil Within the EM world, the main beneficiaries of the recent drop in oil prices are Korea, India, Turkey, and South Africa, while the biggest losers are the Gulf States, Russia and Nigeria. That being... 22nd June 2017 · 1 min read
Energy Update How low will oil prices go this time? Fears about unrelenting growth in US oil production have pulled down oil prices again, despite stocks beginning to fall. However, faster demand growth combined with OPEC’s production cuts should be... 22nd June 2017 · 1 min read
Energy Data Response US Weekly Petroleum Status Report Crude stocks fell again last week. However, production and net imports both rose. Meanwhile, higher demand prompted a fall in gasoline inventories. 21st June 2017 · 1 min read
Precious Metals Update Is palladium flying too close to the sun? Increased speculative activity appears to have been the main driver of the recent surge in the price of palladium, which reached a sixteen-year high of $910 per ounce on 9th June. However... 21st June 2017 · 1 min read
Energy Update Oil demand to rise after a poor start to the year Global oil demand was disappointing in the first quarter of this year. Indeed, this is one reason why prices have continued to fall despite OPEC and some major non-OPEC producers extending their... 21st June 2017 · 1 min read
