Page 96 - MEX-Yearbook-2017

MEX Almanac

June 2017

Precious Metals Cindy disrupted some operations in the Gulf of Mexico, home to about 17
Gold price rallied to the highest since November in the first week of June percent of U.S. crude and 5 percent of dry natural gas output, and supported
as investors positioned themselves for the outcome of the U.K. election and markets modestly. Natural Gas Futures ended the month with slight decrease
potential drama of former FBI Director James Comey’s testimony, while also of 1.31 percent.
tracking tensions in the Middle East. However, later in the month, money
managers pared their net-bullish wagers in the metal for the first time in four Brent Crude Open Close % Change
weeks. The next day, the move was vindicated when Federal Reserve Chair Crude Oil 5,082.00 4,792.00 -5.71%
Yellen raised U.S. interest rates and sparked the biggest weekly loss for gold Heating Oil 4,834.00 4,582.00 -5.21%
prices in more than a month. The gold price closed for the month with a loss of Natural Gas 40.16 38.75 -3.51%
2.40 percent. Hedge funds and money managers slightly slashed their net long 306.30 302.30 -1.31%
positions in COMEX silver causing the prices to plummet by 4.12 percent.
Palladium, which is mainly used to curb harmful emissions from gasoline Agro
vehicles, rallied on expectations that supply will lag the demand for a sixth Cocoa futures which had seen a huge surge in price in the previous month fell
straight year. It’s now almost as expensive as platinum, which posted a monthly to multi-week lows in June as speculative selling continued to drive the market
loss of 2.94 percent, for the first time since 2001, helped by Volkswagen AG’s down. Cocoa price dipped by nearly 5 percent in the month. Coffee futures
emissions scandal two years ago that prompted consumers to switch from dipped to all-time intra-day lows on fourth Thursday of June. Low coffee
diesel to gasoline cars. On the second Friday of the month, prices surged to stockpiles and high demand couldn’t keep the Arabica benchmark from trading
a 16-year high of US$928.36 an ounce as some traders were said to scramble to $1.22 a pound. Analysts were expecting soybean sowings to top corn for the
to get hold of physical supplies. Palladium at the close of the month posted a first time since 1983 because of a price spread that favored the oilseed. Instead,
3.01 percent gain. growers planted 90.9 million acres of corn this year, exceeding all analyst
forecasts. Corn futures decreased by 1.58 percent in June. Cotton futures was
Gold Open Close % Change weighed on collectively by supply-demand estimates viewed initially as neutral
Silver 40,917.50 39,937.50 -2.40% to a bit bearish, slower U.S. weekly export sales and shipments, weak technical
Platinum 555.70 532.80 -4.12% action and sharp losses in grains. It ended up the month session with 9 percent
Palladium 30,537.50 29,640.00 -2.94% price dip. Soybean shot back to life after disappointing acreage numbers and
26,191.00 26,979.00 3.01% that sparked a record gain for soybean futures. Soybean oil futures increased by
4.39 percent whereas soybean increased by a slightly less 3.09 percent over the
Base Metals month of June. Sugar lost nearly 9 percent in June as the industry saw higher
During the month of copper, the sentiments turned negative for copper, the production from favorable weather. U.S. Department of Agriculture report
most-actively traded industrial metal, as it gained 4.57 percent this month. The showed the leap in global sugar production for the 2017/2018 crop year. Prices
rally came as inventories tracked by the London Metal Exchange shrank by for spring wheat, the high-protein variety favored for bagels and pizza crusts,
20 percent over the same period. Prices were also pumped up as copper-pipe seemed to defy gravity in June. Futures soared as much as 8.5 percent on the
makers in China ramped up output, operating at almost 90 percent capacity in last Thursday of the month, the most intraday since 2010, after Canada cut its
June, while air-conditioner production surged. planting outlook and drought conditions expand in U.S. growing states. Prices
were up 18.41 percent in June, beating the gains for 80 other commodities
Copper Open Close % Change tracked by Bloomberg. Sugar lost nearly 9 percent in June as the industry saw
569.10 595.10 4.57% higher production from favorable weather.

Energy Cocoa Open Close % Change
Brent crude entered a bear market, plunging below $45 a barrel for the first time Coffee 202.70 193.00 -4.79%
since November as skepticism that a supply glut will ease worsened. Extreme Corn 285.60 277.80 -2.73%
bearishness extended to refined fuels, where hedge funds have a net short Cotton 14.60 14.37 -1.58%
position of 27 million barrels in U.S. heating oil, causing its price to plummet Soybean Oil 169.60 154.34 -9.00%
by 3.51 percent in June. Crude also plunged into a bear market this month Soybean 69.18 72.22 4.39%
amid concerns that rising global supply will outweigh production cuts from Sugar 33.64 34.68 3.09%
the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and its partners including Wheat 33.04 30.08 -8.96%
Russia. An EIA report showed that U.S. oil production increased to the highest 15.75 18.65 18.41%
since August 2015. A committee of OPEC and non-OPEC members meeting
in Vienna was said to have wrestled with the issues of increasing production The figures above are the percentage change in the prices of corresponding commodity over the
in Libya and Nigeria, coupled with soaring U.S. output. Tropical depression corresponding month. % change is calculated as ((Close-Open)/Open*100)

95 | MEX NEPAL YEAR BOOK 2017