Commodities

The US Federal Reserve (Fed) has made a policy mistake. After raising rates for the first time in nine years, the Fed has held back from further hikes in 2016, bowing to market tantrums. The Fed is struggling to focus on the strength of domestic fundamentals such as the strong… Read More »

Over the last three weeks oil markets have peaked. The Brent oil price has gained 30% and is currently trading at USD 40.50/ bbl. There are three reasons for this rally: rumours of a possible agreement between oil producers to control output, signals that non-OPEC production is falling, and the… Read More »

The price of energy and oil, more specifically, is so heavily determined by shorter-term, cyclical factors that constructing an actionable longer-term view is challengin Despite that, a number of influencing factors are likely to endure for some time: further enhancements to drilling technology, continued environmental pressure, and increased development and… Read More »

Major commodity prices are showing signs of recovery. Both oil benchmarks along with most metals have been posting positive returns for at least the third consecutive week. Silver inflows begin to track gold inflows. Last week investors continued to pile into gold ETPs for the 9th consecutive week, recording inflows… Read More »

Updating Barclays Brent oil price forecast to $40/$55/$70 over the next three years does not alter our outlook for the challenged European E&P sector. For 2016 the goal is survival while ensuring portfolios are positioned to benefit from an eventual oil price recovery. We continue to view sector valuations as attractive… Read More »

Gold miners are historically very cheap but at this juncture are likely to be a value trap due to profitability concerns We find ourselves starting 2016 with heightened market volatility. A global sell off in financial markets has pushed up gold prices by 2%, while gold miners have fallen by… Read More »

A longstanding ban on the export of most crude oil from the US was lifted on December 18th 2015. On January 16th 2016, sanctions placed on Iranian oil exports were lifted after the International Atomic Energy Agency found the country to be compliant with its nuclear deal US export ban… Read More »

$30/bbl oil price creates challenges for the Russian economy and the Big 4 oil and gas firms Russian government income is weakening as the oil price falls, both in USD and RUB, adding budgetary pressure. This has led to the imposition of additional taxes on the oil and gas sector… Read More »

Precious stones represent one of the best ways to diversify the assets. “In Switzerland this kind of investment is not yet so developed, but has a great potential for growth”, said Compostella (Idb Helvetia SA) Precious stones, and diamonds in particular, represent one of the best ways to diversify investments:… Read More »

The 2015 fall has seen some significant weather deviations: Europe and the US have been much warmer than average over November-December while weather has been hot and dry across Asia over the last few months. El Niño is key but there are other weather oscillations at playThe majority of these… Read More »