At the end of the trading week, the price of corn futures for May fell 7% to $184/ton, extending a streak of 6 consecutive declines and closing at the lowest level in 2 months.
Cautious sentiment dominated the raw material market in the past trading week (February 24 - March 2). Strong selling pressure pushed the MXV-Index down 3.5% to 2,264 points - the lowest weekly level since the beginning of the year. At the close, all four commodity groups were deep in the red, of which the agricultural product price index fell the most, by nearly 5.4%. Similarly, the metal market also witnessed the prices of all 10 commodities plummeting...
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| MXV-Index |
Corn extends six-session losing streak, hits two-month low
Agricultural markets last week witnessed sharp declines in both corn and wheat, as supplies increased and export demand faced many challenges.
The May corn futures contract ended the trading week down more than 7% to $184/ton, extending a streak of six consecutive sessions of declines and closing at its lowest level in nearly two months. Selling pressure increased as prices hit psychological resistance, amid a negative market reaction to the 2025 planting area report from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA).
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| Agricultural product price list |
A report from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) said that the corn acreage in the US could reach 38.04 million hectares in 2025, an increase of about 1.38 million hectares compared to the previous year. This is a significant increase and is a factor that puts great pressure on the market, the high acreage means that the output can continue to be in surplus.
USDA also emphasized that among the three major crops, corn, soybeans, and cotton, corn will have the largest increase in acreage. With this acreage, US corn production in the 2025-2026 crop year could reach a new record of approximately 395.9 million tons. This figure not only creates surprises but also strongly impacts corn price movements, while temporarily alleviating concerns about the South American corn crop, which is facing many challenges during the planting period.
Selling pressure also dominated the wheat market last week with a series of 5 consecutive declines, pushing Chicago wheat prices to close at 204 USD/ton, down nearly 8% compared to the beginning of last week.
China has recently canceled 3-4 more wheat shipments from Argentina, after canceling 9-10 shipments from Australia last month. This move has raised concerns about the country's declining demand for wheat imports, thereby negatively affecting the global market.
The trend of import cuts is not new. Nearly a year ago, China also repeatedly canceled orders for SRW wheat from the US. Reducing purchases from one of the world's largest customers could have a significant impact on major exporters such as the US, Australia and Argentina. As demand weakens, the surplus in the market will put more downward pressure on prices.
Meanwhile, the USDA forecasts the country’s wheat acreage to reach 19.02 million hectares, up about 364,200 hectares from the previous crop. The expanded acreage is mainly due to more favorable weather conditions and stable profit margins compared to other crops.
Selling pressure dominates the metal market
The metal market was also surrounded by red in the past trading week. In the context of concerns that the US Federal Reserve (FED) will continue to maintain high interest rates at its March meeting, the prices of two precious metals were under strong pressure.
At the end of the week, silver prices plunged 5.43% to $31.22/ounce. Meanwhile, platinum prices also lost 5.04%, falling to $937.9/ounce, marking the lowest level since mid-January.
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| Metal price list |
The decline in the precious metals group mainly came from concerns that the Fed will continue to keep interest rates high at its meeting in March. Personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index data released on February 28 showed that US inflation increased by 0.3% in January compared to December 2024, in line with forecasts. This reinforced the view that the Fed may only start cutting interest rates in June instead of March as previously expected.
In addition, US President Donald Trump's tariff policies are expected to increase inflationary pressures, forcing the FED to maintain high interest rates to control the economy . High interest rates cause capital to flow into the bond market, while reducing the attractiveness of safe-haven assets such as precious metals.
In addition, experts at financial services company OANDA said that high tariffs on imported cars into the US could cause a decline in car sales, causing platinum demand to fall by about 1% this year, equivalent to 102,000 ounces. Currently, the auto industry contributes nearly 40% of total global platinum demand.
For the base metals group, copper prices fell 1.46% to only 10,026 USD/ton. Notably, iron ore prices also slid 4.94% to 102.4 USD/ton, marking the fifth consecutive decline.
Copper prices recorded a downward trend last week due to increasing inventory pressure, as the market forecasts a surplus supply of more than 300,000 tons in 2024. By mid-week, concerns increased after the US announced an investigation into the possibility of imposing import tariffs on copper, raising concerns about weakening demand.
However, the decline in copper prices was somewhat limited by widespread power outages and the risk of earthquakes in northern Chile, a major copper mining region in the world. In addition, the prospect of copper consumption in the green energy sector also received support from the European Commission (EC) plan, according to which the bloc will promote the use of electric vehicles in corporate fleets, which account for about 60% of the total new car market in Europe.
Meanwhile, iron ore prices have been under pressure this week from the US’s new tariffs on aluminum and steel. This policy not only increases costs for many businesses in the US, but also forces countries to urgently implement measures to protect domestic businesses from the risk of Chinese steel flooding in. Meanwhile, the Chinese real estate market remains gloomy, with little ability to absorb excess steel, raising concerns about oversupply pressure in the market.
Source: https://congthuong.vn/thi-truong-hang-hoa-gia-ngo-keo-dai-chuoi-giam-6-phien-376468.html
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