CommodityHQ.com provides weekly information about any material impact of a major economic, corporate and/or geopolitical event on the global commodities market. The report also analyzes the weekly change in prices of the major commodity futures and commodity-focused ETFs as a result of market changing events and trends. This report covers events and analysis for the week ranging May 1 to May 8.
- A possible OPEC oil cut extension to 2018 helped lift oil prices this week, while natural gas and coal prices dropped.
- Precious metals dropped as the election of the French president along with a possible rate hike in June caused investors to sell out of safe-haven assets.
- Slowing demand in China hit a broad range of metals prices like steel, iron and copper, which all fell for the week.
- Be sure to check out our previous week’s article to keep track of the weekly trends.
Weekly Market Wrap-up
Energy – Oil prices were up for the week on hopes of a supply cut extension, while natural gas prices fell on warmer weather expectations.
- Oil – Crude oil prices ticked higher to $46.43 a barrel on hopes of an OPEC supply cut extension to 2018.
- Natural Gas – Despite a temporary cool front, expectations of warmer weather caused natural gas prices to dip down to $3.172 per million British thermal units.
- Coal – Coal prices fell as the expected impact on supply from storms in Australia turned out to be less disruptive than first thought.
Metals – Three month copper on the LME dropped to $5,520 a tonne as industrial output shows signs of slowing down and inventories rise.
- Precious Metals – Investors fled from safe-haven assets like gold, sending prices down to $1,227.45 after the election of French President Emmanuel Macron. A possible rate hike in June put additional pressure on precious metals.
- Other – Metals such as steel and iron dropped this week as concerns of slowing demand in markets like China worried investors.
Grains – Wheat prices fell to $4.40 a bushel on ample global supply data despite concerns that recent storms may have damaged crops.
- Corn and Soybeans – Soybean futures fell to $9.725 a bushel as increased plantings in the U.S. were in excess of Chinese demand for oilseed.
Softs – Cotton prices dipped slightly this week on news of higher supply but are expected to recover in the coming weeks. Check here to see how agribusiness is changing soft commodities.
If you want to know which commodity is right for you, check out our Commodity Investing Database.
Weekly Movement Across Commodity Futures
For this week, we analyzed all commodities by weekly performance and listed the top three performers by weekly percentage gain. All commodities were taken into account and analyzed from a performance perspective only to find the top three.
| Commodity | Weekly Gain (%) | Contract Expiration | Contract Price (as of May 8) | 52-Week Price Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. Coffee | 2.19% | 07/17/17 | $136.93 | $120.8 - $176 |
| U.S. Corn | 0.69% | 07/17/17 | $366.50 | $301 - $439.25 |
| Natural Gas | -0.25% | 06/17/17 | $3.18 | $1.909 - $3.994 |
It wasn’t a high performing week for commodities with only two actually posting gains. U.S. coffee and U.S. corn posted gains on favorable weather conditions and a dip in crop plantings. Natural gas, while still performing better than most other commodities, posted a loss for the week.
Weekly Commodity ETF Movers
For ETF investors, we tracked the top three biggest gainers and top three biggest losers for the past week. Not included are ETN’s, which behave differently than ETF’s, as well as leveraged ETF’s which may not be suitable for some investors. Considering the limited data for the year, all ETF’s were taken into consideration regardless of YTD gains.
Check out all commodity-based ETFs on ETFdb.com to see their details, including performance information.
Top Three ETF Winners This Week
| ETF Ticker | ETF Name | Commodity Category | Assets ($ million) | NAV (as of May 8) | Return (weekly %) | Return (YTD %) | Expense Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WEAT | The Teucrium Wheat Fund | Wheat | $65.26 | $6.96 | 2.35% | 1.16% | 1.00% |
| TAGS | The Teucrium Agricultural Fund | Agriculture | $1.25 | $24.50 | 1.87% | -4.60% | 1.00% |
| CORN | The Teucrium Corn Fund | Corn | $68.63 | $18.95 | 1.28% | 1.28% | 1.00% |
Agricultural ETFs led the way for this week’s top performers. Wheat led the way following last week’s storm profits, while broad agricultural gains – in particular corn – benefited from positive demand and falling supply data from the week prior.
Top Three ETF Losers This Week
| ETF Ticker | ETF Name | Commodity Category | Assets ($ million) | NAV (as of May 1) | Return (weekly %) | Return (YTD %) | Expense Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USO | United States Oil Fund | Oil | $2,778.53 | $9.66 | -5.66% | -17.58% | 0.77% |
| DBS | PowerShares DB Silver Fund | Silver | $20.17 | $25.34 | -5.13% | 1.93% | 0.75% |
| SIVR | ETFS Physical Silver Shares ETF | Silver | $327.21 | $16.00 | -4.93% | 2.63% | 0.30% |
Oil was this week’s worst-performing commodity-based ETF, while silver fell due to investors fleeing safe-haven assets on the back of the French election and prospects of another rate hike next month.
We provide this report on a weekly basis. Be sure to check our News section to remain updated on the latest happenings in the commodity space.
