CUR - Commodity Roundup: Soft inflation data supports gold; Oil falls despite strong demand signs

2023-11-15 06:09:41 ET

Precious metal prices advanced on Wednesday, with gold prices ( XAUUSD:CUR ) trading +0.53% higher at $1,973.14 an ounce by 0600 am ET, as slowing inflation data raised expectations that the Federal Reserve might be done with raising interest rates.

The latest CPI data has provided a fresh push to gold, after Fed Chair Jerome Powell recently said that if economic conditions warrant, they won't hesitate to hike rates again. Overall consumer prices rose by 3.2% from a year earlier and core prices, which exclude food and energy, were 4% higher. The core increase was the lowest reading in more than two years.

Base metals also moved higher, with copper advancing close to a five-week peak amid hopes of more stimulus measures in top consumer China. Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday China plans to provide at least 1 trillion yuan of low-cost financing to the nation's urban village renovation and affordable housing programs, citing people familiar with the matter.

Investors also took in data showing China's better than expected retail sales and industrial data for October, while the real estate drag worsened.

Meanwhile in the energy market, oil prices moved lower on signs of peak production in the United States, that countered positive crude demand signals from top consumer China.

The International Energy Agency joined the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies in raising oil demand growth forecasts for this year, despite projections of slower economic growth in many major countries.

EIA will release its first oil inventory report in two weeks on Wednesday, after a delay last week due to a systems upgrade.

In the gas market, Chevron has resumed operations at the Tamar gas field in Israel. The country's Ministry of Energy had ordered production shut down in the aftermath of Hamas's October 7 incursion into southern Israel. The restart of production at the field means that gas flows to Egypt will also increase, which will also ease concern for Europe, given that a tighter Egyptian gas market would mean limited LNG exports from Egypt to Europe over the winter, ING reported.

In the agriculture market, soybean and wheat futures moved up, while cocoa traded in red.

Recent Commodity Price Movements

• Energy

  • WTI Crude Oil ( CL1:COM ) -0.84% to $77.60.

  • Natural Gas ( NG1:COM ) +1.94% to $3.17.

  Metals

  • Palladium ( XPDUSD:CUR ) +1.28% to $1,029.86.

  • Silver ( XAGUSD:CUR ) +1.34% to $23.39.
  • Copper ( HG1:COM ) +0.99% to $3.71.

  Agriculture

  • Corn ( C_1:COM ) +0.38% to $480.07.
  • Wheat ( W_1:COM ) +1.16% to $578.64.
  • Soybeans ( S_1:COM ) +0.85% to  $1,397.75.

  Commodity ETFs

  Gold ETFs:

  • SPDR Gold Shares ETF ( GLD )
  • VanEck Gold Miners ETF ( GDX )
  • VanEck Junior Gold Miners ETF ( GDXJ )
  • iShares Gold Trust ETF ( IAU )
  • Direxion Daily Gold Miners Index Bull 2X Shares ETF ( NUGT )
  • Sprott Physical Gold Trust ( PHYS )

  Other Metal ETFs:

  • iShares Silver Trust ETF ( SLV )
  • Sprott Physical Silver Trust ( PSLV )
  • Global X Silver Miners ETF ( SIL )
  • U.S. Copper Index Fund, LP ETF ( CPER )
  • abrdn Physical Palladium Shares ETF ( PALL )

  Oil ETFs:

  • U.S. Oil Fund, LP ETF ( USO )
  • Invesco DB Oil Fund ETF ( DBO )
  • U.S. 12 Month Oil Fund, LP ETF ( USL )
  • U.S. Brent Oil Fund, LP ETF ( BNO )
  • U.S. Natural Gas Fund, LP ETF ( UNG )
  • U.S. Gasoline Fund, LP ETF ( UGA )

  Agriculture ETFs:

  • Invesco DB Agriculture Fund ETF ( DBA )
  • Teucrium Soybean ETF ( SOYB )
  • Teucrium Wheat ETF ( WEAT )
  • Teucrium Corn Fund ETF ( CORN )

For further details see: