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Oil surges above $90 a barrel – What does that mean for metal prices? [Video]

As we move through the second half of 2023 – the Global Energy markets are snatching headlines and firmly positioning themselves as one of the biggest and most lucrative money making opportunities of the current financial climate that we find ourselves in right now!

Nowhere in the world has been immune from the unprecedented surge in energy prices this year, which has hit every major economy and significantly boosted the odds of a resurgence in inflation.

Oil prices rocketed above $90 a barrel for the first time in 2023 on Tuesday after Saudi Arabia and Russia announced plans to extended production cuts until the end of the year.

Meanwhile, energy prices in the United States, which alone make up 8% of the CPI – have been back on the rise this month with the average price of a gallon of gas sitting around at $3.82. That’s the second highest price for this time of year since 2004.

The only time the national average has been higher for this period was last summer, when prices hit $3.85 a gallon.

Elsewhere in the Energy markets, European Natural Gas prices have been on an absolute tear – racking up double digit gains on a consecutive weekly basis to reach levels not seen since last summer.

European Natural Gas prices are currently 6 times higher than where they usually are for this time of the year – trading at the equivalent of more than $600 a barrel of Oil – and we haven't even entered the winter months yet.

As a result, 30% of the world’s highly essential Industrial Metals from Aluminium, Copper, Cobalt, Nickel, Lithium, Palladium, Platinum, Uranium, Zinc and Rare Earth metals production has been forced offline – due to the huge spike in energy prices.

Once the colder weather kicks in, this will enviably drive energy prices higher, ultimately making it more expensive to produce essential commodities – leading to deeper global production cuts, mining and refinery closures and eye-watering shipping costs – opening the door to a major squeeze in Commodity prices ahead.

Since the beginning of this year, a long list of leading Wall Street banks from Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan to Bank of America have described commodities as their “preferred asset class over the next decade”.

In recent days, that chorus has once again become louder with Wall Street's biggest institutions, advising clients to pile back into commodities now – ready for the next big boom!

Where are prices heading next? Watch The Commodity Report now, for my latest price forecasts and predictions:

Author

Phil Carr

Phil Carr

The Gold & Silver Club

Phil is the co-founder and Head of Trading at The Gold & Silver Club, an international Commodities Trading Firm specializing in Metals, Energies and Soft Commodities.

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