Energy: A week of rebound for the oil markets, which are getting back on their feet after a long sequence of declines that took the price of Brent crude below USD 70 a barrel. The weakness of the greenback and the return of a taste for risky assets prompted by the Fed's rate cut enabled oil to rebound strongly last week. As proof, Brent and WTI gained around 4% to 74.30 and 71 USD respectively. Geopolitical frictions are also back in the spotlight, with Israel's air strikes on Beirut and southern Lebanon. The market is thus relegating the latest mixed economic data from China to the background. In Europe, the price of natural gas continues to fall, with the Dutch TTF fluctuating around 33 EUR/MWh.
Metals: Gold reached new highs, boosted by the Federal Reserve's rate cut of 50 basis points. This change in monetary direction favors the precious metal, an asset which, by definition, delivers no return. The golden metal broke through the USD 2,600 per ounce barrier, recording a 27.50% rise since January 1. Base metals also gained ground. Copper rose in London to USD 9,500, while aluminum traded at USD 2,480 and zinc at USD 2,870.
Agricultural products: In Chicago, corn was hit by forecasts from the USDA (US Department of Agriculture), which last week revised upwards its estimate for the US corn harvest. A bushel of corn thus traded down to 570 cents (December 2024 contract).
