Primary Commodities Report for August 19th – 23rd
By: Gabriel Kukulka, The Quinnipiac University Economics Research Team
Commodities Index
Source: Yahoo Finance and own calculations. Rates are in United States dollars per one (1) unit of goods. Brent Crude Oil and Natural Gas are measured in barrels, Gold is per ounce, and the ETF is per share. They are all indexed to be at 100 at the start of the period.
During the week of August 19th to August 23rd, all four commodities experienced price fluctuations. Natural Gas (green) initially surged by over 4.5% but encountered a significant drop on the final day of the week, ultimately ending down 4.6%. Brent Oil (black) remained in negative territory throughout the entire week, reaching a low of around 4.0% before recovering slightly to close with a 1.1% decrease. Gold (yellow) saw a modest price increase of 0.75%, while Nickel (red) recorded the highest gain among the commodities, albeit at a minimal 1.0%.
Commodities Historical Trends
Source: Yahoo Finance and own calculations. Rates are in United States dollars per one (1) unit of goods. Brent Crude Oil and Natural Gas are measured in barrels, Gold is per ounce, and the ETF is per share. The center line is a rolling three-month average. The upper and lower boundaries are the average plus and average minus one standard deviation, respectively, for the same three-month period.
As we move past mid-August, several noteworthy commodity trends have emerged. Gold prices have been on a remarkable upward trajectory, recently surpassing $2,500 per ounce, marking a record high. Meanwhile, Brent Oil prices remain uncertain, with the market closely monitoring whether they will rebound from their monthly lows as summer winds down. Natural Gas prices have decreased slightly this week, now sitting just below the lower boundary of their three-month rolling average. Nickel prices have remained relatively stable, hovering slightly above $12, where they have lingered for most of August.
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