Commodity News

Commodities Week in Review: January 18 to January 22

Agriculture 

The agriculture sector had one of its worst weekly performances in many months, with most of these commodities recording substantial losses during the holiday-shortened trading week. Ostensibly, there are two explanations for the surprise decline in this part of the commodities sector. The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the greenback against a basket of currencies, has performed better than what the market had anticipated in 2021, making dollar-pegged agriculture more expensive for foreign investors to purchase. The second is that investors are taking early profits following the market’s meteoric ascent in recent months.

Cocoa 

• Friday Settlement: -$8.00, or 0.32%, to $2,521 per metric tons
• Weekly Performance: -0.55%
• YTD Performance: -2.93%

Coffee 

• Friday Settlement: -$0.0085, or 0.69%, to $1.232 per pound
• Weekly Performance: -3.56%
• YTD Performance: -3.22%

Corn 

• Friday Settlement: -$0.24, or 4.58%, to $5.0025 per pound
• Weekly Performance: -5.75%
• YTD Performance: +2.99%

Cotton 

• Friday Settlement: -$0.0101, or 1.22%, to 81.56 cents per pound
• Weekly Performance: +0.98%
• YTD Performance: +4.28%

Orange Juice 

• Friday Settlement: +$0.002, or 0.17%, to $1.1710 per pound
• Weekly Performance: -4.49%
• YTD Performance: -6.95%

Rice 

• Friday Settlement: +$0.015, or 0.12%, to $12.60 per pound
• Weekly Performance: 0%
• YTD Performance: +5.79%

Soybeans 

• Friday Settlement: -$0.605, or 4.42%, to $13.0975 per bushel
• Weekly Performance: -7.42%
• YTD Performance: -0.04%

Sugar 

• Friday Settlement: -0.20 cents, or 1.25%, to 15.85 cents per pound
• Weekly Performance: -3.53%
• YTD Performance: +2.26%

Wheat 

• Friday Settlement: -$0.2575, or 3.9%, to $6.35 per bushel
• Weekly Performance: -5.89%
• YTD Performance: -1.05%

Bitcoin 

The peer-to-peer decentralized digital currency bitcoin had fallen below $30,000 before paring some of its losses. Still, the cryptocurrency slumped this week as new Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen hinted at more regulatory oversight over bitcoin. In the short-term, some analysts are forecasting that prices will slide to $26,000 before restarting a new rally.

• Friday Settlement: +$1,370.00, or 4.29%, to $33,290.00 per coin
• Weekly Performance: -8.22%
• YTD Performance: +13.93%

Energy 

The energy sector was mixed this week, with natural gas prices leading the industry’s losses. Energy prices slumped on foreign demand concerns, as well as renewed activity in America’s oil and gas market. Overall, market observers believe that crude prices are going through a consolidation after oil prices surged too high too quickly, forcing the market to scale back a bit.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) Crude Oil 

• Friday Settlement: -$0.0115, or 2.16%, to $51.98 per barrel
• Weekly Performance: -0.12%
• YTD Performance: +7.35%

Brent Crude Oil 

• Friday Settlement: -$0.20, or 0.36%, to $55.21 per barrel
• Weekly Performance: +0.38%
• YTD Performance: +6.75%

Natural Gas 

• Friday Settlement: -$0.038, or 1.52%, to $2.459 per million British thermal units (btu)
• Weekly Performance: -9.19%
• YTD Performance: -3.04%

Gasoline 

• Friday Settlement: -$0.0114, or 0.74%, to $1.5365 per gallon
• Weekly Performance: +1.20%
• YTD Performance: +8.89%

Heating Oil 

• Friday Settlement: -$0.0326, or 2.03%, to $1.5698 per gallon
• Weekly Performance: -1.1%
• YTD Performance: +5.73%

Metals 

Precious metals quietly put together a winning week, although gold and silver prices are still down in the first few weeks of the calendar year. Inflation fears are still driving the metals market, while the performance in the broader financial market and economy is setting the stage for the industrial metals. Overall, as long as fiscal and monetary stimulus and relief is in the trillions, traders will remain bullish on gold and silver while also taking advantage of the momentum in stocks.

Gold 

• Friday Settlement: -$10.40, or 0.56%, to $1,855.50 per ounce
• Weekly Performance: +1.52%
• YTD Performance: -2.42%

Silver 

• Friday Settlement: -$0.289, or 1.12%, to $25.565 per ounce
• Weekly Performance: +2.96%
• YTD Performance: -3.62%

Copper 

• Friday Settlement: -$0.028, or 0.77%, to $3.6195 per pound
• Weekly Performance: +0.51%
• YTD Performance: +2.83%

Palladium 

• Friday Settlement: -$7.60, or 0.32%, to $2,367.50 per ounce
• Weekly Performance: -0.98%
• YTD Performance: -3.58%

Platinum 

• Friday Settlement: -$18.90, or 1.68%, to $1,109.10 per ounce
• Weekly Performance: +2.78%
• YTD Performance: +2.74%

Steel 

• Friday Settlement: -$17.00, or 1.57%, to $1,065.o0 per ton
• Weekly Performance: +2.4%
• YTD Performance: +10.59%