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 weeks ranging July 19th to July 26th.
- Oil prices were lifted higher this week on the news that U.S. shale oil production is slowing down.
- Copper prices hit a two-year high this week as Chinese demand rose, while reports that global supply for the metal may be in short supply.
- Poor crop conditions for spring helped lift a number of agricultural commodities such as wheat, corn, soybeans and cotton this week.
- Be sure to check our previous week’s article to keep track of events in the commodity market.
Weekly Market Wrap-up
Energy – Reports that U.S. shale oil is slowing down was bullish news for oil this week, while natural gas prices fell as weather reports changed to a more bearish outlook.
- Oil – A slowdown in U.S. shale oil production helped lift prices to a monthly high of $48.48 per barrel, while Brent oil climbed over $50 to close at $50.20 per barrel.
- Natural Gas – After weeks of bullish forecasts, weather predictions turned bearish this week causing natural gas prices to drop to $2.925 per million British thermal units.
- Coal – Coal’s recent rise on the back of Chinese power consumption looked to be short lived as coal began a downward slide this week, which is expected to continue through the end of the year.
Metals – Copper prices hit a two-year high of $2.85 per pound on news of slowing global supply and rising Chinese demand for the metal.
- Precious Metals – Gold trickled slightly higher overall for the week trading at $1,252.14 a troy ounce as investors took into account rising yields and an uncertain Fed outlook on raising rates.
- Other – Aluminum prices have risen this year mainly on the back of expected future production cuts with prices climbing over $2,070 per ton.
Grains – Wheat prices continued to soar this week as farmers reported record low crop yields for spring due to drought and poor weather conditions.
- Corn and Soybeans – Soybean futures for November delivery traded slightly higher this week to $10.17 a bushel as poor crop conditions affected other areas of agriculture.
Softs – Cotton prices rose to $68.72 cents a pound as dry weather conditions were taken into account.
If you want to know what 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 July 26) | 52-Week Price Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crude Oil | 4.55% | Sept 17 | $48.48 | $39.19 - $55.24 |
| Copper | 4.33% | Sept 17 | $2.87 | $2.06 - $2.85 |
| Heating Oil | 4.26% | Aug 17 | $1.57 | $1.25 - $1.77 |
Crude oil was this week’s best-performing commodity as reports of a slowdown in U.S. shale oil production helped boost prices. Copper hit a two-year high as well as supply reports indicated a possible shortfall considering increasing Chinese demand.
Weekly Commodity ETF Movers
For ETF investors, we tracked the top three biggest gainers and top three biggest losers for the past week. Not included are ETN’s, which behave differently than ETF’s, as well as leveraged ETF’s which may not be suitable for some investors. Some ETF’s that have less than one year on the market have been excluded due to lack of long term data.
You can use ETFdb.com’s Screener to see a complete list of commodity ETFs.
Top Three ETF Winners This Week
| ETF Ticker | ETF Name | Commodity Category | Assets ($ million) | NAV (as of July 26) | Return (weekly %) | Return (YTD %) | Expense Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CANE | The Teucrium Sugar Fund | Sugar | $8.10 | $10.13 | 2.43% | -22.08% | 1.00% |
| SLV | iShares Silver Trust ETF | Silver | $5,614.91 | $15.58 | 2.37% | 3.11% | 0.50% |
| SIVR | ETFS Physical Silver Shares ETF | Silver | $339.61 | $16.08 | 2.16% | 3.14% | 0.30% |
Sugar led this week’s list of top weekly performing commodity-based ETFs as investors took into consideration global crop yields for spring. Silver rose higher as well, helping two silver-based ETFs to make this week’s list as precious metals inched higher on an uncertain Fed outlook.
Top Three ETF Losers This Week
| ETF Ticker | ETF Name | Commodity Category | Assets ($ million) | NAV (as of July 26) | Return (weekly %) | Return (YTD %) | Expense Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UNG | United States Natural Gas Fund | Natural Gas | $435.61 | $6.47 | -4.29% | -30.73% | 1.12% |
| USAG | United States Agriculture Index Fund | Broad Agriculture | $1.90 | $17.01 | -3.13% | -5.87% | 0.80% |
| UNL | United States 12 Month Natural Gas Fund | Natural Gas | $9.45 | $9.71 | -2.90% | -16.94% | 0.90% |
Two natural gas-related ETFs found their way onto this week’s list of worst weekly performing commodity-based ETFs. Bearish forecasts dragged prices lower after several weeks of bullishness, while a broad agriculture fund dropped on profit-taking activity.
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.
