Industrial Metals Update China's policy direction supportive of copper demand All the signs are that the Chinese authorities are committed to using the powerful tools at their disposal to prevent a “hard landing”. We expect that this will result in stronger demand for... 11th May 2015 · 1 min read
Commodities Weekly Oil prices run ahead of themselves After a strong start to the week, with Brent seemingly heading for $70 per barrel, the recovery in oil prices ran out of steam by Friday. Indeed, the rebound over the last few months could simply... 8th May 2015 · 1 min read
Metals Chart Pack Prices rally as investors turn positive The S&P GSCI industrial metals index fell sharply in May and under-performed other commodities. Renewed strength in the dollar coupled with subdued Chinese economic data undermined investor sentiment... 7th May 2015 · 1 min read
Metals Watch The “new normal” for Chinese steel There has been much talk about the “new normal” for the Chinese economy, involving slower and more sustainable growth. In this Metals & Mining Watch, we discuss the implications of the “new normal”... 5th May 2015 · 1 min read
Commodities Chart Pack Industrial commodities lead the pack Some weakness in the US dollar and hope for a delay to the first US interest rate hike helped to support commodity prices in April. Meanwhile, although Chinese economic data showed persistent weakness... 1st May 2015 · 1 min read
Industrial Metals Update Nickel’s rollercoaster ride may not be over, yet After sliding to six-year lows earlier in the month, nickel prices have rebounded sharply in the last week to around $13,500 per tonne. Although we are positive on the medium-term outlook, the latest... 30th April 2015 · 1 min read
Latin America Data Response Chile Retail Sales, Ind. Prod. & Copper Prod. (Mar.) The raft of weak activity data for Chile, while disappointing, are unlikely to have prevented a robust expansion of GDP in Q1. We suspect that much of last month’s weakness can be explained by the... 29th April 2015 · 1 min read
Commodities Outlook Turning the corner The (largely positive) views set out in our first quarterly of 2015 have mostly been proved right. We continue to believe that this will be a year of recovery for commodity prices as a whole... 28th April 2015 · 1 min read
Industrial Metals Update Rally in iron ore prices to prove temporary The recent rally in iron ore prices is reflecting short-term market dynamics, including an upturn in Chinese steel production and somewhat lower stocks. But the bigger picture is that the market... 27th April 2015 · 1 min read
Commodities Weekly Relative calm unlikely to last In a relatively quiet week, oil prices consolidated their recent gains as the consensus swung round to our view that the lows recorded in Q1 would prove to be the turning point. However, powerful... 24th April 2015 · 1 min read
Industrial Metals Update US steel prices should pick up Having fallen sharply since late-2014, we expect US steel prices to stabilise and pick up over the course of this year owing to resilient domestic demand. That said, our forecast also assumes that the... 24th April 2015 · 1 min read
Metals Data Response Global Steel Production (Mar. 15) World Steel Association (WSA) data for March show a 2.7% m/m decline in global steel output, with falls in most of the largest producers. However, some recovery can be expected in coming months... 21st April 2015 · 1 min read
Global Economics Update Further slowdown in China will not stifle growth elsewhere China’s growth rate is set to slow a little further in the coming years. This will have a significant knock-on effect on some other emerging economies, but we think its overall impact on growth in the... 21st April 2015 · 1 min read
Industrial Metals Update Stocks only tell half the story Stock movements and prices should have an inverse relationship, but this has not beenthe case for many of the base metals over the last month. There are, of course, otherdrivers of the price... 17th April 2015 · 1 min read
Industrial Metals Update Can the rally in lead prices be sustained? The boost to lead prices from the recent squeeze on stock availability may prove temporary. That said, it has exposed the underlying tightness in the market which should be a key factor supporting... 15th April 2015 · 1 min read
Commodities Update Four and a half reasons not to worry about China’s slowdown The relative weakness of China’s Q1 GDP and March activity data has reinforced concerns about the impact of softer demand on global commodity markets. But in contrast to the consensus, we remain... 15th April 2015 · 1 min read
