President Donald #Trump put Iran back in the penalty box on Tuesday (May 8) - but the impact on the #oil market could be determined by how China responds. #China, a voracious consumer of oil, holds great sway because it's #Iran's biggest customer. Almost one-third of Iranian oil shipments this year have gone to China, according to Genscape.

The #UnitedStates imports no #crude directly from Iran. And there is no guarantee that Iran's major customers will comply with new sanctions. Even close allies in the #EuropeanUnion are signaling frustration with Trump's decision. Beijing could be even less likely to go along. If the new sanctions cause European nations to cut back or even stop buying Iran's oil, it would leave more crude for China to buy, possibly at a discount.


#Commodities #CommodityMarket #CommodityPrices #OilFutures #CrudeOil #CommoditiesTrading #OilIndustry #OilandGas #OilProduction #OilPrices #OilTrading #OilMarket #WTI #JCPOA
China is the big wild card in Trump's Iran decision
http://money.cnn.com/2018/05/08/investing/china-iran-deal-oil-prices/index.html

#Crude rebounded from earlier losses after U.S. President Donald #Trump withdrew from the Iranian nuclear accord and said new sanctions will be imposed on #OPEC’s third-biggest #oil producer. Futures pared losses to 2.4% in New York on Tuesday after earlier dipping more than 4%. Trump characterized the 2015 accord intended to halt #Iran’s quest for atomic weapons as a great 'embarrassment.' Sanctions lifted as part of that deal will be re-imposed after 180 days, according to the U.S. Treasury.

#WestTexasIntermediate oil for June delivery slid $1.67 to settle at $69.06 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Total volume traded was about 70 percent above the 100-day average. A measure of oil market volatility climbed to the highest level in a week. #Brent for July settlement dropped $1.32 to end the session at $74.85 on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange.


#Commodities #CommodityMarket #CommodityPrices #OilFutures #CrudeOil #CommoditiesTrading #OilIndustry #OilandGas #OilProduction #OilPrices #OilTrading #OilMarket #WTI #JCPOA
Oil Rebounds as President Trump Withdraws From Iran Nuclear Deal
http://fortune.com/2018/05/08/oil-prices-trump-iran-nuclear-deal/

#China, alongside #India, are the top two buyers of Iranian #crude #oil. The Chinese Foreign Ministry signaled last Wednesday (May 2) that it wasn't in support of the #US quitting the deal, but stopped short of criticizing any specific country.

The market will find ways to circumvent any sanctions, such as transferring supplies between floating storage, using barter trade, or not using U.S. banks. For instance, Iranian traders have the option of trading in Chinese yuan-denominated crude oil futures on the Shanghai International Energy Exchange - circumventing any restrictions on dollar-denominated trade and U.S. banks. What seems to be certain is that the market will look for ways to trade Iran oil even amid sanctions, particularly as Iranian oil prices are likely to fall and be discounted.


#Commodities #CommodityMarket #CommodityPrices #OilFutures #CrudeOil #CommoditiesTrading #OilIndustry #OilandGas #OilProduction #OilPrices #OilTrading #OilMarket #WTI #JCPOA
No matter what #Trump says on #Iran, China will probably ignore him
https://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/08/china-a-major-iran-oil-importer-would-resist-any-us-sanctions.html

#China opens trade in Dalian #ironore futures to foreign investors from Friday (May 4), aiming to boost its pricing clout for one of its top imports and hoping traders will take a market notorious for retail speculators more seriously. Iron ore is the second commodity China is opening to outside investors after launching crude oil futures in late March.

Unlike crude oil, though, the iron ore contract on the #DalianCommodityExchange (DCE) - launched in 2013 - has a deep pool of liquidity and major Western traders have already had access through local Chinese entities. With trading volumes last year that reached 20 times global iron ore trade, and 25 times volumes done in rival contracts on the Singapore Exchange, iron ore futures in China regularly sway benchmark spot pricing. Giving foreign investors direct access can only boost that influence.


#Commodities #CommoditiesTrading #CommodityPrices #CommodityMarket #Mining #MiningIndustry #IronOrePrices #MiningCompanies #IndustrialMetals #BaseMetals #IronOreProduction #IronOreMining #IronOreFutures
China opens iron ore market to the world in pricing, image push
https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/china-opens-iron-ore-market-to-the-world-in-pricing-image-push/

#Gold prices hit their highest in a week on Monday (May 7), buoyed as the dollar slipped after marking its strongest level this year in the previous session. Spot gold had risen 0.3% to $1,318.46 per ounce, after earlier touching its highest since late-April at $1,318.85. U.S. gold futures for June delivery were up 0.3% at $1,319.10 per ounce.

In other precious metals, spot #silver gained 0.5% to $16.56 an ounce. #Platinum advanced 1.3% to $917.60 an ounce, having earlier hit its highest since April 25 at $918.70. #Palladium rose 1% to $976.50 an ounce, after earlier reaching its strongest since April 27 at $977.20.


#Commodities #CommoditiesTrading #CommodityPrices #Mining #GoldTrading #CommodityMarket #GoldMining #PreciousMetals #GoldFutures #GoldPrices #MiningCompanies #MiningIndustry #GoldMarket
Gold rises to 1-week high as dollar pauses rally
https://in.reuters.com/article/global-precious/gold-rises-to-1-week-high-as-dollar-pauses-rally-idINKBN1I80A0

Farm country is worried about reports that #China has curbed buying #US #soybeans due to the ongoing trade spat. Farmers in the nation's heartland are beginning the new planting season facing uncertainty given Beijing's threat to impose a new tariff on soybean imports. In the 3 weeks ending April 26, China canceled just over 196,000 metric tons (or about 7.2 million bushels) of U.S. beans for the current marketing year, according to USDA. That's roughly equivalent to filling up the cargo holds of 4 mid-sized bulk ships.

#Brazil, though, enjoyed record volumes of soybean exports last month, according to Anec, the country's grain exporter group. Anec put exports at just over 11.6 million tons in April, or about 1 million above the March tally.


#Commodities #CommodityMarket #SoftCommodities #Agribusiness #CommodityPrices #CommoditiesTrading #AgriculturalCommodities #Agriculture #AgriculturalSector #AgriculturalIndustry #SoybeanPrices #SoybeanProduction #SoybeanFutures #Trump #TradeWar
Angst hangs over farm belt after reports that China stopped buying US soybeans
https://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/04/angst-in-farm-belt-after-reports-that-china-halted-buying-us-soybeans.html