Primary Commodities Report for August 26th – 30th

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.

The week of August 26th to August 30th was marked by significant volatility in Natural Gas prices. After dropping by approximately 5.9% midweek, Natural Gas (green) rebounded strongly in the latter half of the week, closing with a 5.3% gain. Nickel (red) was the only other commodity to see an increase, though it was modest at 0.8%. Meanwhile, Brent Oil (black) edged down by 0.3%, and Gold (yellow) remained relatively stable, slipping just 0.7% by the end of the week.

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 August comes to a close, it marks a month of significant volatility in Brent Oil prices, which currently hover just above the lower boundary of their three-month rolling average at around $78 per barrel. Meanwhile, Gold prices continue to stay well above the upper boundary of their three-month rolling average, maintaining the surge that began at the start of August. This week’s spike in Natural Gas prices has brought levels closer to their three-month rolling average. In contrast, Nickel prices remain subdued compared to the levels seen earlier in the summer.

Further Reading:

Oil Settles $1 Down As Supply Set to Rise, Uncertainty Around Fed Rate Cuts