Know What's Happening in Commodities
Know What's Happening in Commodities
OPEC+ agrees modest oil quota increase amid Middle East war
OPEC+ members agreed in principle to raise production quotas for May by roughly 206,000 barrels per day, a symbolic adjustment as the war constrains output and shipments. Saudi Arabia and Russia led the video‑conference decision, signaling alliance cohesion despite the geopolitical shock.
China's state‑owned Zijin Mining Group announced an aggressive push to rank among the world’s top three gold and copper producers, primarily through overseas acquisitions. The strategy emphasizes gold and copper as core minerals for future growth while acknowledging heightened geopolitical tensions and a talent gap that could hamper rapid expansion. Zijin’s plan comes as U.S. officials criticize Chinese market participants, adding pressure to its global ambitions. The miner’s outlook signals a broader Chinese drive to secure critical resources abroad.
A high-stakes meeting indeed. If Trump yields to Netanyahu's demand to push for a comprehensive deal covering Iran's ballistic missiles programme and support for regional proxies, possible outcomes: -- Drawn-out negotiations under the looming shadow of military action -- Higher chances of a...
Macro: growth softens, yields rise. Key: sticky CPI, Fed tightening, tight labor. Risks: stagflation, policy error. Trade: short US Treasury duration as real yields climb. — Viktor Kopylov, PhD, CFA. More insights: t.me/si14Kopylov
The episode examines how Chinese traders, long recognized for aggressive speculation, sparked a dramatic swing in gold prices—from a surge to $5,600 in late January to a plunge to $4,423 within days. The host recounts a December report predicting this...
The episode reviews the afternoon market dynamics for corn, soybeans, wheat, and livestock futures, noting a shift from steady to lower overnight prices before a positive day‑trade bounce driven by soy meal and oil strength and weather concerns in South...
Uranium spot prices surged above $100 per pound in January 2026, the first breach of that level in two years, signaling renewed market vigor. Sprott Asset Management, a major buyer, added 4 million lb to its fund this year, bringing total holdings...
Technical analysis made simple with Kevin Wadsworth of Northstar & Bad Charts. We break down his case for more downside risk (bitcoin to bottom in Q3/Q4?) and the Capital Rotation Event: why many assets look bearish while gold holds strong....
In this episode, the host reviews recent price movements in South African thermal and industrial coal, highlighting a notable price rally driven by strong demand from Indian sponge‑iron and cement producers. The discussion references insights from the McCloskey OPIS coal...
United States Antimony and Americas Gold have formed a 51-49 joint venture to construct a hydrometallurgical processing plant in Idaho’s Silver Valley. The facility will treat antimony feed from Americas Gold’s Galena complex and could handle additional sources, aiming to...
S&P Global Ratings upgraded First Quantum Minerals' credit outlook to positive, citing tangible progress toward restarting the Cobre Panama copper mine. The agency now expects the mine to resume operations in the first half of 2026, with a production ramp‑up later...
The frac spread count measures the number of completion crews actively fracturing a well. In the Permian, the frac spread count averaged ~100 crews in 2025, 3% higher than the 2024 average. Yet operators completed a total of ~6,800 wells,...
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio highlighted Brazil's new trade agreement with China that will use their own currencies instead of the U.S. dollar, signaling a shift toward a secondary, dollar‑independent global economy. He warned that as more nations transact...
Mountain Province Diamonds announced a pause on the Tuzo Phase 3 development at its Gahcho Kué mine, citing weak diamond prices and rising costs. The joint‑venture partners are refocusing capital on higher‑grade feed from the NEX pipe to safeguard liquidity. The decision...
Vedanta Aluminium has raised its Jharsuguda billet output to 830,000 tonnes per year, adding 250,000 tonnes of new capacity and a 120,000‑tonne Primary Foundry Alloy line. The upgrade uses advanced casting and homogenising technology from Wagstaff and Hertwich, cementing the...
Regular readers know we at @Opinion had flagged BP had far more debt than the company's prefered metric (~$22 bn). Look at net debt + hybrids + leases + off-balance sheet items and it's >$50 bn. Now, BP acknowledges the issue...
In December 2025 the United States and the Democratic Republic of Congo signed a strategic partnership that gives Washington preferential access to Congolese mineral deposits. The article argues that the next step is building logistics corridors, using the Lobito Corridor—linking...
BP reported 2025 earnings of $7.5 bn, a 15% drop from the previous year, as crude prices fell roughly 20%. The oil major lifted its cost‑saving goal to $5.5‑$6.5 bn by the end of 2027, up from a $5 bn ceiling, and halted...
Australian legume exporters posted a dramatic December surge, shipping 588,122 tonnes of chickpeas and 410,805 tonnes of lentils, up 57% and more than double respectively from November. India dominated demand, taking 63% of chickpeas and 39% of lentils, while Bangladesh and Pakistan...
The past two weeks saw extreme swings in commodities, with gold tumbling 12% after a record near $5,600, silver down about 30% from its $120 peak, and natural gas plunging 26% on shifting demand forecasts. President Trump’s nomination of former...
The United States announced a new trade pact that lowers its tariff on Bangladeshi apparel from 20% to 19% and grants tariff‑free status to garments made with U.S. cotton and man‑made fibers. In return, Bangladesh will open its market to...
🇮🇳Indian refiners' reluctance to take Russian Urals crude shipments is pushing these discounted cargoes toward buyers like China & others, making them even cheaper in those markets—while the Indian refiners turn to replacement crudes at international prices. An Urals cargo...
OIL MARKET: Washington issues a new general license to allow oilfield-service companies to work in Venezuela — it’s a crucial step to boost oil output in the Latin American country. https://t.co/ozdDE2MiMZ
The agricultural sector faces a perfect storm of policy and market pressures, according to a bipartisan letter signed by former heads of the National Corn, Barley, and Soybean Growers associations. The signatories contend that recent tariffs on farm inputs and...
🇨🇦🛢️🇺🇸 US Canadian crude imports by importing region and crude grade quality Total US plateauing/rolling over Midwest still key Canadian market, but entirely saturated USGC was the pressure valve, but fell back when TMX opened (first went to West Coast, now increasingly China)...
Another month of US import price data shows - again - that foreigners aren't broadly eating Trump's tariffs (bc if they were, prices would have collapsed this year - instead they're up slightly) https://t.co/Dwv9hRwxO1 https://t.co/pF66RuUWjN
US grain storage capacity expanded steadily from 2000 to 2019, adding roughly 350 million bushels per year, but growth has essentially stopped after 2020. Meanwhile, crop production kept rising, pushing the surplus capacity margin down to just 5 % in 2025. On‑farm...
Gold Price Short-term Outlook: XAU/USD From Panic to Pause- Breakout to Decide Direction https://t.co/e2vca3B4h2 $XAUUSD Daily & 240min Charts https://t.co/BsGu6wpKlh
OUT NOW - @BergMilton on: - clear sign of "climax top" in gold & silver - why he expects a precious metals bear market - S&P 500, Bitcoin, Software + Korean stocks & more Apple🔊https://t.co/bNqmCOVqMV Spotify📽️https://t.co/mnN6Dn02hi 1/3 https://t.co/U3F0Pxojhy
Elevra Lithium has signed a non‑binding MOU with Canada’s Mangrove Lithium to off‑take up to 144,000 tonnes of spodumene concentrate per year from the North American Lithium (NAL) project in Quebec. The supply would begin in 2028, scaling to full...
🇨🇦🏭⛽️ Canadian refineries are running strong in the West, have seen operations slip faster than seasonally normal in Ontario, and have had a bouncing start to the year in Quebec & Eastern Canada. https://t.co/CY8K1qOKIh
US refinery heavy crude sourcing from Canada (red) vs Venezuela (pink), compared to refinery capacity (blue) 2010 on the left, 2024 on the right https://t.co/nKOX5T7tGn
The February 2026 North American Oil Data Deck reveals that petroleum liquids output hit a record 31.4 million barrels per day, driven by a surge in Canadian production that more than compensated for flat U.S. and Mexican output. Meanwhile, continental...
US Gulf Coast refineries (PADD3) have continued to grow distillation capacity while dramatically shrinking imports, displacing imported light and medium crudes with domestic light tight oil from the Shale Patch https://t.co/6EezXrbiQL
USDA's estimates for global corn and wheat ending stocks come in below expectations/last month (ending wheat's run of surging each month as harvests surpassed predictions). Soy stocks are up on a massive 180 mmt Brazilian crop. https://t.co/kM88lO1Zbq
The U.S. military conducted a right‑of‑visit boarding of the Panama‑flagged tanker Aquila II in the Indian Ocean after tracking it from the Caribbean. The vessel, linked to sanctions on Venezuelan and illicit Russian oil, had been operating with its transponder off,...
USDA pushes Brazil's 2025/26 soybean harvest to 180 million metric tons. No changes to corn or to Argentina's crops. https://t.co/D2KarYYtVJ
U.S. corn ending stocks decrease from last month as USDA bumps exports to 3.3 billion bushels. Minimal/no changes in wheat and beans. https://t.co/FpMZKyhSPO
I had a great chat with Peter Spina @goldseek at #VRIC. We covered why this still looks like a real gold/silver bull market, why I keep cash ready, and where early-stage opportunity is hiding. Full interview 👇
The Brent (white) and WTI (blue) futures curves are telling rhyming but importantly different stories right now Both have a backwardated front, depressed belly into contango past 2027 But Brent curve seeing steepening prompt backwardation (70c/bbl now) while WTI weakening (20c) https://t.co/5ZyF18ZPDO
All trade estimates for USDA's supply & demand report due Tuesday at 11 am CT. On average, analysts don't expect major changes to U.S. and world stocks, though Brazil's corn and soybean crops could increase. U.S. demand will also be...
Gold is back above $5,000. The rise in gold is one manifestation of the debasement trade, which is about markets seeking safe havens from debt monetization. Big thanks to @DavidWestin from @BloombergTV for all the right questions and a great...
Further thought on BP: Today proves, if ever there was a need of further proof, what a disaster the tenure of Bernard Looney and Murray Auchincloss were for the UK oil major. (...all permited / encouraged by a weak board...)
In view of BP's announcement this morning it's cancelling its $750-million-a-quarter share buyback, let me re-publish yesterday's @Opinion note arguing the British oil major couldn't afford it anymore. It comes down to debt -- lots of debt. https://t.co/23vNRD4Nsw
Will China's coal production hit another record this year? 🇨🇳🪨 China’s main coal industry body warns that imports may fall if Indonesia moves to restrict shipments They see production hitting a record 4.86 billion tons in 2026, but could go higher if...
Russian oil tankers list Singapore as destination amid sanctions and shift to China, LSEG data shows https://t.co/1md44bH813
⛄️⛄️⛄️Sanctions? What sanctions? Where are you going, Zarya? This is going to be the 7th LNG carrier passing the Red Sea carrying Russian LNG. This is a sanctioned tanker carrying LNG from the sanctioned Arctic LNG 2. Map from @Kpler
🇲🇽🏭 Mexican refineries are processing more crude right now than any time since 2014. Thanks most obviously to the start-up of the Dos Bocas refinery, but helped along by high utilization across other large facilities. https://t.co/wEpnmiM8He
Gold is back above $5,000. The rally in precious metals is reckless and crazy, but so is global fiscal policy. At some point over the past 20 years, policy makers who believe in keeping public debt stable stopped existing. Makes...
🇧🇷Analysts are expecting upside to Brazil's corn and soybean harvests in USDA's report on Tuesday. 🇦🇷Argentina's crops, on average, are not predicted to move much from the January forecast. https://t.co/D3Jg3BAIYv
📊 Fresh N. American Oil Data 📊 Continental petroleum output hits fresh high-water mark with Canadian supply reaching all-time highs amidst a bounceback in oilsands activity, offsetting flat-ish production in the US and Mexico Check out the Full report: https://t.co/7Xk7El7r1l
