Commodity wrap-up for the week that was

Highlights

• The prices of commodities remained volatile last week on fears related to the Russia-Ukraine war and the rising coronavirus cases in China.
• Brent and WTI crude oil 1-month Futures recorded a decline of 4.61% and 4.31% respectively during the last week.
• Gold along with industrial metals including platinum and tin declined in the last week.

It was a mixed bag for commodity prices last week. Several commodities registered significant gains while the prices of others tumbled drastically. The prices of commodities remained volatile during the bygone week on fears around the Russia-Ukraine war and rising coronavirus cases in China.

The prices of commodities ranging from energy products to metals have recorded substantial gains in the last one month following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, raising supply shortage concerns. However, the rally in some of the commodity prices have cooled off on prospects of resolution between the two nations.

Must Watch: As Russia-Ukraine War Intensifies, Commodities Also Soars

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Brent crude oil ended the week at US$107.93/bbl while WTI crude oil closed at US$104.70/bbl on Friday, recording weekly declines of 4.61% and 4.31%, respectively. The prices of both the benchmarks dropped dramatically on rising oil inventories and increasing coronavirus cases in China. Furthermore, in the energy sector, coal prices dropped nearly 8% in the last week.

Natural gas prices jumped to near US$4.86/MMBtu, recording a weekly gain of 3.18%. The significant rise came on the back of higher demands in Europe and limited supplies from Russia.

Also Read: Crude oil slides from multi-year highs as Iran talks rev up

In the last week, gold recorded one of the biggest declines since mid-June. The decline in gold prices is due to a rise in global bond yields as prospects of higher interest rate continue to strengthen around the world. Moreover, hopes for a diplomatic solution between Russia and Ukraine ahead of the resumption of peace talks also curtailed safe-haven demand. Likewise, silver prices hit a two-week low of US$24.43/oz in the last week.

Industrial metals including platinum and tin declined last week after hitting multi-year highs recently. Conversely, Iron ore, copper, and aluminium prices registered gains in the last week.

The prices of battery metal, nickel tumbled nearly 29% in the last week. At the same time, lithium prices logged substantial gains during the period. Against this backdrop, let's skim through a few commodities that recorded substantial volatility during the last week.

Data Source: EODHD/Others Eikon

Crude Oil

Crude oil benchmarks recorded substantial drops in the last week as Russia and Ukraine held talks to discuss a ceasefire. Mixed reactions to the negative inventory report also weighed on oil prices. The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) had noted an increase of 4.345 million barrels in the US crude oil inventory against the expectations of a 1.375 million barrels decline. Furthermore, lockdowns in a few regions in China due to rising COVID-19 cases also subdued the commodity’s demand.

Here’s how commodities performed in the last week click here

Nickel

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Nickel prices continued their freefall on Monday and hit US$31,380 per metric tonne as the London Metal Exchange resumed nickel trading. Nickel prices had jumped earlier this month on supply disruptions associated with the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Russia is the world's third-largest nickel producer in the world. The prices hit above US$100,000 per metric tonne on 8 March 2022 after China’s Tsingshan Holding Group, one of the world’s top producers, bought large amounts to reduce its short bets on the metal.