Gold reaches 1-month highs on Tuesday, US NGAS futures list 10% on Tuesday, cotton futures
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Summary:
- The US dollar fell and worrying US economic confidence statistics.
- NGAS down from 3-week highs.
- A significant selloff that had driven cotton futures to a nearly 22-month low.
Gold prices supported by concerning US economic statistics
Gold prices rose to above $1,700 on Tuesday, the highest level in more than a month, as the US dollar fell and worrying US economic confidence statistics made the argument for the Federal Reserve to drop its target interest rate. Investors eagerly anticipate this week's release of the October CPI report in the hopes that it will support the recent decline in inflation and lessen pressure on the Federal Reserve to keep depressing demand. Higher interest rates increase the opportunity cost of storing non-yielding bullion, which reduces the appeal of gold, despite the fact that it is commonly seen as a hedge against inflation and economic uncertainty. Investors in other markets kept an eye out for China's policy cues to see if it was considering easing up on its zero-Covid policy.
Gold Dec ‘22 Futures Price Chart
NGAS down from 3-week high
US natural gas futures had a 10% decline on Tuesday, falling from a 3-week high of nearly $7 set the previous day to $6.4/MMBtu. The demand projection for the upcoming week was also revised downward due to warmer weather. The average US gas demand, including exports, is anticipated to increase to 121.2 bcfd from 98.4 bcfd this week, falling short of earlier projections. Increasing LNG exports and declining output have recently bolstered prices. After Berkshire Hathaway Energy's Cove Point LNG plant resumed operations on October 28th, the Texas-based Freeport LNG export facility, which has been idle since June, is expected to start up again by the middle of the month. So far in November, the Lower 48 US states' average gas production has decreased to 98.4 bcfd.
NGAS Dec ‘22 Futures Price Chart
Cotton prices 50% down from May peak
As dip buyers started to show up, a significant selloff that had driven cotton futures to a nearly 22-month low of 71.6 last month was tempered. Cotton futures are now moving towards the 80 USd/Lb level. Nevertheless, prices remained almost 50% below their May peak, restrained by a stronger currency and persistent worries about demand brought on by the difficult economic climate. According to the most recent estimate from the US Department of Agriculture, both acreage and yield grew, and worldwide cotton production is predicted to reach 118.1 million bales in 2022–2023—an increase of 2% over the previous year. India, Brazil, and China are mostly responsible for the increased output, which counterbalanced decreases from the United States and Pakistan.
Cotton Marc ‘23 Futures Price Chart
Sources: finance.yahoo.com, tradingeconomics.com
