Commodities News and Headlines
Commodities News and Headlines
Commodities Pulse
EMAIL DIGESTS
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EMAIL DIGESTS
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Every morning
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Tuesday recap
Spot lithium prices have surged 125.65% over the past year, with a 35.63% rise year‑to‑date as of February 28 2026. Jacob White of Sprott Asset Management notes expanding demand beyond electric vehicles into energy‑storage systems and AI‑driven infrastructure, while supply disruptions in Zimbabwe and China tighten the market. Federal actions—including Section 232 tariffs, the Project Vault mineral stockpile, and DOE backing for Lithium Americas’ Thacker Pass project—are recasting lithium as a strategic, policy‑driven commodity. The Sprott Lithium Miners ETF (LITP) mirrors this momentum, posting a 151.17% NAV gain over twelve months.
Prairie farmland is entering a split market, with premium land still appreciating while average parcels stagnate or decline. After 15‑20 years of steady gains, 2024 saw a 9.3% national price rise and a 13.1% jump in Saskatchewan, but offers per...
The United States carried out large‑scale strikes on Iran’s Kharg Island over the March 14‑15 weekend, targeting military facilities while sparing the island’s crude export terminal. Kharg processes over 90 % of Iran’s oil shipments, so the attacks raise geopolitical tension...
Fastmarkets will shift its CIF China copper scrap price publication from a monthly to a weekly schedule and add three new grades—millberry, cobra and clove—under the GB 38471‑2023 standard. Existing No 1 and No 2 grades retain their definitions, with minimum contract sizes...
Gold opened at $5,008.56 per ounce on March 16, up 0.15% from the previous close, while still on a five‑day downtrend of 4.46%. The metal’s modest daily gain reflects ongoing macro uncertainty and shifting real‑interest‑rate expectations. Over 2024 and 2025...
Rising fuel prices linked to the Hormuz crisis could add $30‑35 billion to global container shipping costs if sustained for a year. Sea‑Intelligence estimates an extra $153‑$178 per TEU, potentially pushing freight rates higher. While direct fuel expenses are significant, analysts...
The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) raised its short‑term outlook for West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude, projecting an average price of $73.61 per barrel in 2026—$20 above its February forecast. The revision reflects heightened risk premiums after the February 28 onset...
U.S. steel exports to Canada fell 22% in 2025, dropping the United States' share of Canadian steel imports to 36% from 39%. Overall Canadian steel imports contracted 16% to 2.4 million tonnes as protectionist measures and retaliatory tariffs reshaped trade flows....
Export demand slowdown in West Asia caused higher unsold leaf tea at the Coonoor auctions. In Sale 11, about 22% of leaf grades remained unsold, with leaf sales reaching only 75% of the 820,499 kg offered. Dust grades saw stronger domestic buying,...
MetalMiner provides metal price forecasting services tailored to U.S. manufacturers, combining proprietary price indices, market‑signal forecasts, and support/resistance analysis. Its indices aggregate 10‑15 years of data and are normalized to reflect the actual mix of metals bought by U.S. firms....
Crude oil prices jumped more than 40% in just 15 days after the U.S.-Israel‑Iran conflict disrupted the Strait of Hormuz, pushing the benchmark to about $103 a barrel. Former IMF chief economist Gita Gopinath warned that if oil averages $85...
Marine fuel sales at Singapore, the world’s largest bunkering hub, slipped 10.6% month‑on‑month in February to 4.67 million tonnes, though they were 12.8% higher than a year earlier. Low‑sulphur VLSFO volumes fell 9.8% and high‑sulphur fuel oil dropped 15.2%, while alternative...
The International Energy Agency announced that member countries will release 400 million barrels from emergency reserves to calm markets disrupted by the West Asia conflict. Brent crude rose to $103.95 a barrel while WTI slipped to $98.62, reflecting mixed reactions. The...
Indonesia’s high‑pressure acid leach (HPAL) plants that produce nickel pig iron (NPI) saw output plunge more than 67% in mid‑February after a processing‑waste landslide disrupted operations near the Morowali Industrial Park. Satellite‑based monitoring by Navigate Commodities shows ore flows rebounding...
Tantalite prices have surged to $200‑$210 per pound, the highest level in over twenty years, after a landslide shut the Rubaya mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The DRC, which supplied more than half of global tantalum output in...
Brent crude surged to $106.50 a barrel as strikes on Iran's Kharg Island raised supply fears, while a drone attack temporarily halted loading at Fujairah port. The International Energy Agency announced a coordinated emergency release of just under 412 million barrels,...
U.S. forces struck Iran’s Kharg Island, a hub handling about 90% of Tehran’s oil exports, prompting a sharp rally in crude markets. Brent crude jumped 1.8% to $104.98 per barrel, pushing oil above $100 for the first time since the...
The escalating U.S.-Israel conflict with Iran is disrupting global oil supplies, prompting price pressures across Asia. In Hong Kong, petrol station prices have risen modestly, while airlines such as Cathay Pacific and Hong Kong Airlines are set to double fuel...
New Zealanders watching their KiwiSaver balances see declines as oil prices jump above $100 per barrel following the US‑Israeli attack on Iran. Higher oil costs drive inflation, interest‑rate hikes and reduced corporate profits, pushing global equity markets lower, including the...
The escalation of the U.S.-Israel-Iran conflict has driven Brent crude above $100 per barrel, creating a global energy shock. Simultaneously, the Philippines faces a summer heat‑index surge that will require roughly 3,340 MW of additional peaking capacity to keep the grid...
Oil prices surged to $100 a barrel as the Iran‑Hormuz crisis intensified, prompting a wave of individual buying in the United States Oil Fund (USO). USO attracted nearly $1 billion of inflows and has risen about 46% since the conflict began,...
Oil prices have spiked above $100 a barrel as the war in Iran forces the Strait of Hormuz to close, prompting the International Energy Agency to label the disruption the worst in history. Australian economists and the RBA’s futures market...
Colombia’s natural‑gas output fell to a multi‑decade low of 683 mmcf/d in January 2026, a 17 % drop year‑over‑year, forcing the government to lean heavily on costly LPG imports that now cover about 30 % of domestic gas demand. The shortfall threatens electricity...
Shares of the world’s oil super‑majors have surged to record levels following the US‑Israeli strike on Iran, driving oil prices above $117 a barrel. In the two weeks since the conflict began, the combined market capitalisation of the six listed...
Gold investors face a pivotal Fed meeting on March 17‑18, with spot gold slipping below $5,050 and losing more than 1% for the week as a strong dollar and mixed economic data weigh on the metal. The Fed’s rate decision...
India’s government announced a rapid spot‑LNG procurement to offset a 40% supply cut from Qatar, which has jeopardised domestic urea production. Petronet LNG invoked force majeure after tankers failed to reach Ras Laffan amid the West Asia conflict. The first...
Coal India Ltd (CIL), which produces about 80% of India’s domestic coal, pledged to keep electricity prices fair amid the West Asia crisis that threatens imported coal costs. The state‑owned firm holds 122 million tonnes of pithead inventory and 53 million tonnes...
State‑owned oil marketing companies (OMCs) are weighing a freeze or discount on the refinery transfer price (RTP), paying refiners less than import‑parity rates to curb losses from a retail fuel price freeze. Global crude prices have surged above $100 per...
JPMorgan warned that Brent crude staying above $90 a barrel could trigger a 10‑15% correction in the S&P 500, creating a domino effect across global equities. The bank estimates the equity decline would shave about 1% off U.S. consumer spending through...
Kevin O'Leary warned that Iran's threat to mine the two‑mile‑wide Strait of Hormuz underscores the world's ongoing reliance on oil. He highlighted that oil is the only commodity used across every sector, including by adversarial nations. O'Leary noted that securing...
Diesel and gasoline prices in the Philippines are set to spike again this week, driven by the ongoing war in the Middle East. The Mean of Platts Singapore benchmark, combined with freight costs, suggests diesel could rise up to P23...
Gold and silver prices in India have shown heightened volatility as global macro factors and Middle East tensions influence market sentiment. On the MCX, April gold futures fell 0.6% to ₹1,60,651 per 10 gm, while May silver futures slipped 0.29% to...
The Democratic Republic of the Congo’s Deputy Prime Minister Daniel Mukoko Samba met with the Professional Group of Petroleum Product Distributors on March 10, 2026 to assess global oil market volatility. The discussion focused on the recent Brent crude surge...
Jet fuel prices have spiked to $150‑$200 a barrel after the U.S.–Israel attack on Iran, more than doubling pre‑conflict levels. The surge, compounded by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, is forcing airlines such as Qantas, SAS and Air...
The United States launched a missile strike against Iran’s Kharg Island terminal, the country’s main oil export hub, late Friday and early Saturday local time. The attack targeted the facility that handles roughly 30% of Iran’s crude shipments, aiming to...
OPEC’s crude output jumped 640,000 barrels per day in February, the steepest rise since June, driven largely by Saudi Arabia’s production increase. The kingdom lifted output by roughly 340,000 bpd to 10.34 MMbpd and later signaled an additional boost of about...
The Trump administration has initiated an 86 MMbbl drawdown from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the first phase of a 172 MMbbl release slated for four months. This move is part of a broader 400 MMbbl coordinated effort with allied nations to ease soaring...
Brett Arends argues that oil prices are unlikely to surge to $150 a barrel, despite recent sensational forecasts on Wall Street. He outlines three reasons to doubt the panic, emphasizing that speculative headlines often ignore market fundamentals. The piece critiques...
The ongoing U.S.-Israel conflict with Iran is beginning to ripple through the global energy market, prompting concerns about oil shortages and higher prices. A panel on Washington Week with The Atlantic highlighted rising gasoline costs and the lack of a...
U.S. gasoline prices have surged nearly 30% year‑to‑date, reaching $3.64 per gallon as the Persian Gulf conflict tightens oil supplies. Brent crude climbed to $103 a barrel and WTI to $98.7, up roughly 70% since the start of 2026, driven...
Prices for key compound‑semiconductor metals have surged, with tungsten, tantalum and molybdenum doubling and gallium climbing 123% to $2,100 per kilogram. The spike follows China’s late‑2024 gallium export ban to the United States and is amplified by the Middle East...
U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgess announced that the United States can provide a reliable, affordable and secure energy supply to the Asia‑Pacific amid the Middle East war that has disrupted oil flow through the Strait of Hormuz. The Trump administration’s...
Oil prices have surged sharply this month, driven by geopolitical friction and OPEC+ output curbs, but analysts argue the rally is transitory. Global inventories remain ample and demand growth is modest, limiting upward pressure. Historical data shows oil’s price cycle...
Thai refiners have secured a rare cargo of North Sea Forties crude, purchasing roughly 700,000 barrels from Trafigura for a late‑March shipment. This marks the first Thai acquisition of North Sea oil since Bloomberg began tracking in 2019, highlighting a...
U.S. officials, including Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, confirmed that the Trump administration has discussed using oil futures contracts to temper soaring crude prices amid the escalating Iran‑Israel conflict. While the idea was explored, Burgum said no concrete market intervention has...
Brent crude futures climbed above $103 a barrel on Friday, extending their run into triple‑digit levels. The rally was driven by traders’ concerns over a potential prolonged disruption of Gulf oil supplies amid the ongoing regional conflict. Simultaneously, several governments...
European power markets are experiencing a sharp price surge as gas costs climb sharply following the outbreak of war in the Middle East. Major gas hubs across Europe have seen prices more than double, pushing gas‑fired electricity tariffs to roughly...
U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) exporters are considering postponing scheduled maintenance to increase available cargoes amid a tightening global gas market caused by the Middle East conflict. Current export terminals are operating near peak capacity, leaving little slack for unexpected...
Economists warn that a sustained $200 per barrel WTI price would trigger a systemic shock to the U.S. economy. At that level, gasoline could top $7 per gallon, eroding over $400 billion in discretionary consumer spending and deepening energy poverty. The...
Senator Josh Hawley sent letters to the five largest U.S. fertilizer producers—CF Industries, Mosaic, Koch Fertilizer, Nutrien and Yara—demanding an explanation for a sharp two‑week price surge. He warned that any exploitation of the Iran conflict to justify higher prices...
