The commodities market experienced a volatile trading week.

Commodity market today, October 16, 2024: World raw material prices continue to fluctuate. Commodity market today, October 17: Sugar prices fall to their lowest level in nearly a month.

In particular, the energy market led the overall market trend, with prices of all commodities falling sharply by 7-14%. Brent and WTI crude oil prices plummeted by 7.6% and 8.4% respectively. In addition, the agricultural market also saw several weak sessions amidst positive supply prospects in the US and Brazil. At closing, the MXV-Index lost 3.54% to 2,157 points.

Thị trường hàng hóa hôm nay ngày 18/10: Thị trường hàng hóa nguyên liệu trải qua tuần giao dịch ‘đỏ lửa’

MXV-Index

Crude oil prices fell to their lowest level since early October.

Crude oil prices fell during the week of October 14-20, ending a two-week streak of gains. MVX stated that sluggish Chinese demand and easing tensions in the Middle East were the main factors influencing oil prices last week. This also led to OPEC lowering its forecast for global oil demand growth this year.

WTI crude oil futures for November delivery fell by as much as 8.39% to $68.69 per barrel; Brent crude oil futures for December delivery also lost 7.57%, falling close to $73 per barrel, the lowest level recorded in early October.

Energy price list

In its October report, OPEC projected global crude oil demand in 2024 to increase by 1.93 million barrels per day, down from the 2.03 million barrels per day increase forecast in the previous month's report. This move marks the third consecutive downward revision by the organization for the commodity.

Notably, weak consumption in China is the main reason why OPEC has cut its demand growth forecast. OPEC forecasts Chinese oil demand growth to fall from 650,000 barrels per day to 580,000 barrels per day. Although Chinese government stimulus measures will help boost demand in the fourth quarter, OPEC still believes that economic difficulties and the trend towards green fuels are hindering oil consumption growth for the year.

Additionally, customs data shows that China imported 45.5 million tons of crude oil in September, down 7.4% year-on-year. This also marks the fifth consecutive month of year-on-year decline in crude oil imports.

Furthermore, the easing of tensions in the Middle East has also contributed to pressure on oil prices. Israel has informed the US that Tel Aviv will carry out retaliatory attacks targeting Iranian military facilities rather than nuclear or energy sites. This could help prevent the conflict from escalating into a full-scale war between Iran and Israel, which could disrupt crude oil supplies from the Middle East.

Soybean prices extended their decline for a third consecutive week.

This past week, the agricultural commodities market was also dominated by red. Soybean prices, in particular, fell 3.53% to $356 per ton, extending their decline for the third consecutive week. Although the market received some positive news regarding demand, this was insufficient given the pressure from the ongoing harvest in the US and the prospect of improved weather conditions in Brazil.

Agricultural product price list

In its Crop Progress Report, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) stated that as of October 13th, the country's soybean harvest this year had reached 67% of the planted area, a 20% increase from the previous week and 3% higher than market expectations. This figure far exceeds the 57% of the same period last year and the historical average of 51%, indicating that dry weather has facilitated harvesting, thereby increasing selling pressure on the market.

In addition, CONAB's monthly report indicates that Brazil's soybean production for the 2024-2025 season is projected to reach 166.05 million tons, a 12.6% increase from the previous season's 147.38 million tons. This increase is driven by expectations of improved planted area and yields. With more abundant supply, Brazil's soybean exports are expected to reach 105.54 million tons, a more than 14% increase compared to the 2023-2024 season. Furthermore, in October, the National Association of Brazilian Grains Exporters (ANEC) raised its October soybean export outlook to 4.34 million tons, up from the previous estimate of 4.12 million tons. The large supply from the South American market was a factor that boosted soybean sales last week.

Prices of some other goods