Commodities Weekly Commodities end 2016 on a strong note Prices have drifted a bit this week, ahead of the Christmas and New Year holiday period. However, the bigger picture is that the prices of most industrial commodities are ending the year significantly... 22nd December 2016 · 1 min read
Commodities Update Key commodity calls for 2017 Commodity prices face a number of headwinds moving into next year, including rising US interest rates, further US dollar strength and less stimulus spending by the Chinese authorities. However, we... 21st December 2016 · 1 min read
Metals Data Response Global Aluminium Production (Nov.) According to the International Aluminium Institute (IAI), global primary aluminium output rose by 2.9% y/y last month, up from 1.5% y/y in October, as India, Russia and China continued to expand... 20th December 2016 · 1 min read
India Economics Update Markets take Fed rate hike in their stride Financial markets in India have taken last week’s decision by the US Fed to hike interest rates for the first time in a year in their stride. A bigger test might come if the Fed now tightens more... 20th December 2016 · 1 min read
Commodities Weekly Commodities largely shrug off Fed rate hike The response of commodity prices to Wednesday’s US rate hike was relatively muted as the move had been widely anticipated. Predictably, precious metals, notably gold, fell on the news but further... 16th December 2016 · 1 min read
Industrial Metals Update Mixed picture for metals stocks in 2016 Aside from a 14% m/m jump in copper inventories, there haven’t been any big changes in stocks over the past month. However, the year-to-date picture is more mixed, with the aluminium, tin and zinc... 15th December 2016 · 1 min read
Industrial Metals Update China Industrial Metals Demand Monitor (Nov.) China’s activity data for November painted a positive picture for metals demand. However, there are signs of a slowdown in the all-important construction sector which, coupled with official efforts to... 14th December 2016 · 1 min read
Commodities Update Oil prices jump on the prospect of output cuts The price of oil rose sharply as oil producers surpassed market expectations by agreeing to cut supply by 1.8m barrels a day from January. Meanwhile, industrial metals prices rose further as investors... 13th December 2016 · 1 min read
Commodities Weekly Focus on the Fed statement and Trump’s reaction The prices of most industrial metals surged this week, largely due to increased investor interest. Strong China’s imports in November and the prospect of fiscal stimulus in the US further buoyed... 9th December 2016 · 1 min read
Metals Data Response South Africa’s Mine Production (Oct.) A slump in PGM output drove South Africa’s total mine production lower in October, after tentative signs of a recovery in September. While this is not good news for South Africa’s economy, it is... 8th December 2016 · 1 min read
Commodities Update China’s commodity imports bounce back China’s commodity import volumes jumped in November, despite markedly higher US dollar prices and a weaker renminbi. Trends in activity suggest that import demand will remain robust in the near-term... 8th December 2016 · 1 min read
Metals Chart Pack Investor enthusiasm buoying the prices of industrials Investors have been encouraged by stronger economic data out of China and the prospect of fiscal stimulus in the US and have significantly increased their exposure to industrial metals. Conversely... 6th December 2016 · 1 min read
Commodities Weekly OPEC seal the deal Oil prices surged this week as OPEC surpassed expectations by confirming production cuts and announcing quotas for member countries. Given OPEC’s poor record on compliance, we are sceptical that the... 2nd December 2016 · 1 min read
Commodities Chart Pack Markets focus on the Trump positives Following the victory for Donald Trump in the US presidential election, commodity markets chose to focus on his promise of a large fiscal stimulus, including a substantial increase in infrastructure... 1st December 2016 · 1 min read
Metals Watch What’s next for zinc prices? Over the past year, zinc prices have rallied strongly, reaching a nine-year high recently, on the back of mine closures and production cuts. While the refined market will continue to tighten through... 30th November 2016 · 1 min read
Industrial Metals Update Stocks continue to dwindle It has been a quiet month for stock movements, with the exception of copper. However, the drop in LME copper stocks and surge in Shanghai inventories can be largely explained by price arbitrage... 29th November 2016 · 1 min read
