Many raw materials saw gains on Thursday despite gold prices reaching fresh all-time peaks due to increased demand for safe assets.
Oil prices regained some of their previous losses as India might cease purchasing Russian crude oil, potentially altering global oil distribution.
In the meantime, silver prices increased by over 2% on Thursday due to ongoing supply worries that kept market optimism high.
Oil recovers
On Thursday, oil prices stayed stable as traders expected a possible halt to India's purchases of Russian oil.
This advancement may change worldwide oil distribution and boost the need for other sources.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is said to have assured US President Donald Trumpon Wednesday, India announced it would stop buying oil from Russia.
Russia is currently India's main source of oil, supplying about one-third of the nation's oil import requirements.
Oil prices, nevertheless, encountered notable upward constraints following a negative report issued by the American Petroleum Institute (API).
Data from the API showed a third straight week of growth in crude oil stockpiles, with an increase of 7.36 million barrels during the past week.
This contradicts the market's typical forecast of a 136,000-barrel decrease.
Gasoline stock levels increased by 3 million barrels, whereas distillate supplies decreased by 4.8 million barrels.
"The reduction in distillate stockpiles sent conflicting messages about energy usage across the nation," analysts from ING Group stated in a report.
The highly anticipated EIA weekly inventory report will be published later on Thursday.
As of the time of this writing, the cost of West Texas Intermediate oil stood at $58.31 per barrel, reflecting a 0.1% increase from the last trading session, whereas Brent crude remained at $61.92 per barrel, showing minimal changes.
Gold hits new record
The COMEX gold contract reached a new all-time high of $4,728.40 per ounce on Thursday.
The increase in gold's value was fueled by growing US-China conflicts and predictions of two additional Federal Reserve interest rate reductions this year.
In the meantime, silver prices increased by more than 3% in the prior session, ending above $53 per ounce because of limited supply in London.
At the same time, US Treasury yields fell to a multi-month low after signals from Fed Chair Powell suggested a possible quarter-point interest rate reduction this month.
Regarding China, Trump made a new trade warning directed at the nation, clearly increasing trade conflicts, as Beijing promised to respond with countermeasures against Washington's suggested 100% increase in tariffs.
ING analysts said:
Furthermore, traders are still cautious before the results of the Section 232 investigation on essential minerals – such as silver, platinum, and palladium – due to increased concerns about possible tariffs, even though they were previously exempted in April.
This year, gold and silver have become the leading commodities in terms of performance, with their prices increasing by more than 55% and 80% so far this year, respectively.
This expansion is primarily due to higher central bank purchases and substantial increases in ETF investments.
ING analysts added:
The desire for a safe-haven has been driven by continued US-China trade conflicts, concerns about the Federal Reserve's autonomy, and the continuing US government closure.
The COMEX December silver futures price stood at $52.830 per ounce, reflecting a 2.8% increase from the last trading session.
Copper
The three-month copper futures contract on the London Metal Exchange stood at $10,577.35 per ton, reflecting a 0.4% decrease from the last trading session.
Copper prices have experienced a volatile October, reaching above $10,800 per ton and dropping as low as $10,480 per ton.
Neil Welsh, head of metals at FCA-approved multi-asset brokerage Britannia Global Markets, stated:
Higher copper prices are encouraging Chinese smelters to increase exports, as rising costs discourage domestic buyers, allowing them to capitalize on the growing price difference compared to Chinese benchmarks, similar to a surge in outgoing shipments earlier this summer.
The trading arm of Saudi Aramco is said to be looking to hire copper specialists, indicating a significant step by the world's leading energy company to accelerate its growth in the metal trading industry.
Welsh added:
This action is considered a key move in Aramco's plan to diversify, set against the background of the shift in energy, with the goal of increasing its presence in the raw materials market.
In September, China's core CPI growth hit 1%, signaling its first return to this rate in nearly 19 months.
This implies a slight increase in local demand, which is positive for aluminum prices, as noted by Welsh.
In conjunction with stock reductions, aluminum is expected to continue performing well in the short term.
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