Middle East & North Africa Economics Weekly Saudi oil, UAE energy & mortgages, Morocco GDP The announcement by Saudi Arabia that it will roll over its voluntary 1mn bpd oil output cut through August has led us to downwardly revise our GDP growth forecast for this year. The UAE has been much... 6th July 2023 · 8 mins read
Commodities Update Lumber price to ease back on demand weakness After fluctuating between $500 and $600 per 1,000 board feet for most of this year, we expect the US lumber price to fall from around $520 today to $475 by the end of the year due to weaker demand... 5th July 2023 · 4 mins read
Commodities Weekly US crude exports rise; China’s demand to drive prices There wasn’t a consistent direction to commodity prices this week. Natural gas prices in Europe and Asia rose, indicating stronger competition for LNG cargos. Meanwhile, most industrial metals prices... 30th June 2023 · 4 mins read
Commodities Outlook Energy prices to buck the downbeat trend We expect most commodity prices to struggle this year against a backdrop of a stronger dollar and deteriorating investor risk appetite. Energy-related commodities will be the exception. We expect... 29th June 2023 · 31 mins read
Commodities Weekly Growing upside risks to our grains price forecasts With the Fed still hinting at more interest rate increases, the dollar strengthened and contributed to declines across most commodity prices this week. One of the few prices that did increase was the... 23rd June 2023 · 4 mins read
Commodities Update El Niño puts your mochaccino at risk If the weather forecasters are right, El Niño conditions have arrived in the Pacific and are set to build over the next few months. The negative impact on agricultural production will depend upon the... 23rd June 2023 · 4 mins read
Commodities Weekly China stimulus a possible lifeline for metals demand Most prices rose this week, helped by a weaker dollar, stronger-than expected US retail sales in May and interest rate cuts by the People’s Bank of China. Natural gas prices rose particularly sharply... 16th June 2023 · 4 mins read
Commodities Weekly Demand indicators to continue to drive prices for now The oil price ended the week flat despite Saudi Arabia pledging to cut output by 1m bpd in July at the OPEC+ meeting last weekend. Most other commodity prices rose, supported by China’s May trade data... 9th June 2023 · 6 mins read
Commodities Chart Pack Investor pessimism may be running too deep Most commodity prices have moved lower over the past month as concerns about demand loomed large and the US dollar strengthened. We think that prices will continue to struggle over the next few months... 7th June 2023 · 13 mins read
Commodities China’s imports firing on all cylinders in May Growth in China’s commodity imports generally was strong in May, with a notable rise in crude oil imports. While the data are consistent with our above-consensus outlook for China’s growth this year... 7th June 2023 · 2 mins read
Commodities Weekly OPEC+ likely to stand pat It was a week of two halves, with prices initially falling before the passage of the US debt ceiling bill and a strong US May employment report saw prices recoup some of those losses later in the week... 2nd June 2023 · 6 mins read
Commodities Update China’s PMIs point to solid, if unexciting, demand China’s PMI surveys suggest that the economic recovery is ongoing, but the pace of growth has slowed. While a lower reading for construction activity is a negative for metals prices, the persistent... 1st June 2023 · 2 mins read
Commodities Weekly Data and debt ceiling to move prices next week Commodity prices generally fell this week, as investors’ expectations for the Federal Reserve’s policy rate rose on concern about the persistence of high inflation. The dollar also strengthened... 26th May 2023 · 6 mins read
Commodities Weekly US data the key driver of prices next week Dealmaking was a major driver of commodity prices this week. The 11th hour extension of the Black Sea Grain Initiative alleviated fears of Ukraine’s grain exports being cut off from world markets... 19th May 2023 · 6 mins read
Commodities Chart Pack Demand concerns a lingering headwind for prices Most commodity prices have moved lower over the past month as concerns about demand have intensified and risk appetite has soured. We think prices will continue to struggle over the next few months as... 16th May 2023 · 13 mins read
Commodities Weekly Weak demand will weigh on prices for some time The demand backdrop for commodities appears weak. While oil prices rose this week, they remain low by recent standards at $70-75 per barrel. Industrial metal prices, which rallied late last year and... 12th May 2023 · 6 mins read
