EUROPEAN COMMODITIES UPDATE: War-sensitive commodities recover as negotiations show less progress than hoped

Analysis details (10:24)

Crude futures continue to nurse recent wounds, with Brent May back around USD 102.50/bbl while WTI April inches toward USD 100/bbl. The gains were spurred as the tone around the Russia-Ukraine negotiations signals less progress than Wednesday's reports – with the Ukrainian Defense Minister stating that so far there is “nothing to satisfy us in negotiations with Russia”. He added a peaceful solution can be reached with Russia, but "on our terms". The upside is further supported by Russia’s Kremlin, who suggested the recent FT report of major progress in Ukraine is “wrong”. Eyes for the crude complex remains on geopolitics; the OECD said central banks should be prepared to intervene if needed to ensure smooth functioning of financial markets; the Ukraine crisis could add 2.5ppt to global inflation and hit global GDP growth by 1ppt. Elsewhere, precious metals are supported amid geopolitical demand, with the yellow metal re-eyeing USD 1,950/oz at the time of writing. Meanwhile, LME nickel futures attempted to resume trade but hit the tweaked 8% limit down shortly after.

17 Mar 2022 - 10:23- MetalsData- Source: Newsquawk