Register for Digital Look

Commodities: Oil dips as Forties pipeline resumes full operations, base metals weaker

By Alexander Bueso

Date: Tuesday 02 Jan 2018

Commodities: Oil dips as Forties pipeline resumes full operations, base metals weaker

(ShareCast News) - Commodities began the year on a higher note alongside a dip in the greenback towards its 52-week lows.
As of 1918 GMT, the US dollar spot index was trading 0.35% lower to 91.92, alongside a 0.22% gain for the Bloomberg commodity index to 88.36.

The US currency's 52-week low was to be found not far beneath its then current levels, at 91.011.

Outside of natural gas, energy futures were noticeably weaker as front month Brent crude futures slipped 0.64% to $66.44 a barrel.

At the weekend, Ineos announced that the North Sea Forties pipeline was again "fully opertaional".

February 2018 RBOB gasoline futures on NYMEX were also trading lower, erasing 1.38% to change hands at $1.7710 a gallon.

Similarly-dated natural gas futures on the other hand were climbing 2.47% to $3.03/MMBtu., on the back of freezing cold temperatures across a wide swathe of the US.

In another corner of the market, precious metals' prices were all moving higher on the back of said dollar weakness, with the February COMEX gold contract rising by 0.58% to $1,316.907oz..

However, with the exception of lead and tin, base metals were lower, even after the private sector-compiled Caixin China factory sector PMI rose from 50.8 for November to 51.5 in December.

"The start to 2018 saw LME prices maintain the steady tone, helped by a weakening USD and better than forecast China manufacturing PMI data for Dec. However, only tin and zinc made another new high, trading up to 20100 and 3352 and with the complex now sending out 'overbought' signals we could see a short term correction unless fresh news propels the market higher," said analysts at Sucden Financial.

Agricultural futures were the strongest segment of the market and were sporting hefty gains, with March ICE-traded cocoa up by 2.33% to $1,936 per metric tonne.

In parallel, March 2018 corn on CBoT was up by 0.71% to $3.5325 a bushel and March wheat by 1.52% to $4.3350 a bushel.

CME live cattle futures also gained, tacking on 1.52% to $1.2340 a pound.





..

Email this article to a friend

or share it with one of these popular networks:


Top of Page