Recent content by FrieFrench

The Baltic Dry Index, which gauges the cost of shipping commodities including iron ore, cement, grain, coal and fertilizer, was down 2.20% at 577 points, the lowest since August 1986. Because dry bulk primarily consists of materials that function as raw material inputs to the production of...

The final HSBC/Markit Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for January came in at 49.7 on a seasonally adjusted basis, just below the 50.0 level that separates growth from contraction. The number was slightly lower than a preliminary “flash” reading of 49.8 but higher than the final 49.6 in...

At the end of the latest offshore session, benchmark iron ore for immediate delivery to the port of Tianjin in China was trading at $62.80 a tonne, down 0.8 per cent from its previous close of $63.30 a tonne. The price is now at its weakest point since the middle of 2009. It has now lost 11 per...

It could be. It will depend on how fast the shale oil wells close.

West Texas Intermediate for March delivery decreased as much as $1.24 to $44.35 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange and was down 57 cents to $45.02 at 12:14 p.m. London time. The contract lost 72 cents to $45.59 on Jan. 23, the lowest close since March 2009. The...

A new Conference Board of Canada report released today at the Oil and Gas Summit 2015 in Calgary estimates Canada’s economy will suffer a 0.4 per cent hit to growth this year. Lower oil prices will have sharply differing effects across Canada’s regions and industries. The Canadian dollar fell...

Who moved my cheese? – The Swiss Franc debacle The Swiss National Bank’s surprise decision on Thursday caused the franc to surge against the euro and dollar, sending shockwaves through the global financial system. The euro suffered its biggest-ever one-day fall against the franc on Thursday...

Copper for delivery in three months dropped 5.3 percent Wednesday to settle at $5,548 a metric ton ($2.52 a pound) on the London Metal Exchange, after dropping as much as 8.6 percent, the biggest intraday loss since October 2008. It then rebounded on Thursday by rising as much as 2.5 percent to...

Lead for delivery in three months slid 2.2 percent to $1,878 a metric ton by 1:26 p.m. Wednesday on the London Metal Exchange. It reached the lowest price since August 2012. The metal, also used in radiation shielding, fell 15 percent this year and is the worst-performing metal on the LME. Lead...

The rouble smashed through resistance to an all-time low of 65.5 to the dollar, falling a jaw-dropping 11%, in a crescendo of selling on Monday, as oil prices continued to slide and markets braced for a likely default in Ukraine. The Russian currency has lost half its value since President...

Where did you see that?

Scandinavian iron ore miner Northland Resources SE has filed for bankruptcy with more than $650 million in debt. Kumba, whose Sishen mine in South Africa is the continent’s largest iron ore operation, will reduce stay-in-business capital expenditure 20 percent and a further 10 percent in 2015...

Faced with falling cotton prices, governments triggered mechanisms to support their farmers. This is the case in India, which has a record production for the second consecutive year – it should even become the world’s largest producer, overtaking China … Plentiful global supplies, thanks to...

Brent for January settlement declined $2.88 to $66.19 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange, the lowest since Sept. 29, 2009. The volume of all futures was 4.9 percent below the 100-day average. WTI for January delivery dropped $2.79 to end at $63.05 a barrel on the New York...

Nickel for delivery in three months advanced 7.4 percent last week to settle at $16,450 a metric ton last Friday on the London Metal Exchange, the biggest jump since last month. The commodity has gained more than 18 percent this year. Even if prices has risen sharply recently, nickel prices are...