By Burhan Sansarlioglu
ISTANBUL (AA) – Commodity markets followed a positive course with sharp rises last week, as the expectations for a 50-basis-point rate cut by the Fed gained strength, while bond yields and the US Dollar Index retreated.
Former Fed official William Dudley stated that enough space for a 50-basis-point rate cut was possible at the bank’s meeting last week, while expectations for a 25-basis-point rate cut is equally probable in the money markets.
The Fed’s monetary decision to be announced this week and Fed Chairman Jerome Powell’s future statements will be at the forefront, analysts said.
Meanwhile, the US 10-Year Bond fell 7 basis points to 3.65%, while the US Dollar Index decreased 0.1% to 101.1.
- Precious, base metals surge across board
In the US, the number of people applying for unemployment benefits for the first time increased by 2,230 in the week before, slightly above market expectations.
The slowdown in the US labor market supported the “dovish” steps expected by the Fed, while the interest rate cuts by the European Central Bank (ECB) positively influenced precious metal prices.
Silver prices rose 9.9% last week after the Democratic candidate for the US presidential race, Vice President Kamala Harris, stated that she is committed to diverse energy sources to reduce foreign dependency.
Meanwhile, palladium and nickel prices increased 17% and 0.3%, respectively, as Russian President Vladimir Putin said that he may impose restrictions on the exports of some products.
Platinum prices rose 8% last week after the Platinum Quarterly report by the World Platinum Investment Council was published, which said that a deficit of 1 million ounces of platinum is expected in the second quarter.
In China, declining copper stocks in the Shanghai Stock Exchange warehouses signaled stabilized demand, while the production in Chile declined, leading to a 4.1% price surge.
Aluminum stocks also fell in China, while strong demand for renewable energy, causing a contraction in supply, pushed aluminum prices 5.5% higher last week.
As for the energy group, Brent crude oil’s barrel price climbed 0.5% last week as production was disrupted in the Gulf of Mexico due to Hurricane Francine, which brought flash flooding and tornadoes, recently upgrading to a Category 2 storm.
According to the International Energy Agency, the crude oil production of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) declined 70,000 barrels per day month-on-month to 27.3 million barrels, causing supply concerns.
Hurricane Francine also negatively affected natural gas production in the Gulf of Mexico, according to a statement by the US Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, causing prices to rise 0.8%.
Meanwhile, sugar prices rose 2.7% last week amid the recovery of oil prices and expectations for sugar demand.
Estimates for lower coffee production in Brazil due to the La Nina weather phenomenon, as well as the drought in Vietnam, caused coffee prices to soar 9.9%.
Cocoa prices surged 8.7% per ton last week as concerns over the production in West Africa and the continued increase in global demand persisted.
At the same time, the bushel price of wheat rose 4.9%, corn 0.7%, soybeans 0.1%, and rice 1.2% last week on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.
On the Intercontinental Exchange, the pound price of cotton rose 3.7% during the same period.
*Writing by Emir Yildirim