Commodity Market News

A sharp rally in metals—led by copper—dominated commodity moves this week as prices hit fresh highs amid tight supply and supportive macro signals. Energy, by contrast, showed signs of softness. The divergence reshapes investment and industrial priorities across miners, manufacturers, and traders.

Hedge funds are increasingly acquiring physical energy infrastructure—storage, pipelines and generation—to capture yield and arbitrage in volatile commodity cycles, while India’s SEBI panel has proposed liberalizing agricultural derivatives to deepen participation and hedging. Together, these moves signal a shift toward more institutionalized, asset‑backed commodity activity and expanded hedging in key agricultural sectors.

A growing oil oversupply driven by production ramp-ups in Brazil, Guyana and continued U.S. output is expected to push crude prices lower into 2026, with analysts warning Brent could fall below $60. At the same time, silver has surged past $60/oz on tight supply, increased industrial and investor demand, and policy shifts that have tightened availability.

Bank of America’s bullish call on commodities—driven by a ‘run it hot’ fiscal stance and rising institutional flows—meets a sharp copper supply squeeze after Mercuria withdrew ~40,000 tonnes from LME Asia. Together these developments are lifting prices across energy and base metals and heightening the importance of inventories, backwardation, and hedging for traders and industrial users.

A sharp split emerged this week: crude prices slid on an oil supply glut, while precious and transition metals climbed. China plans a diesel export surge to ease tight Asian fuel supplies—moves that shift flows across energy and metals.

The World Bank forecasts another multi-year decline in commodity prices through 2026 — led by energy — while a short-lived cold snap sent U.S. natural gas sharply higher. Combined, the headlines underline a disinflationary trend for broad commodities even as weather-driven volatility continues to disrupt individual energy markets.