2023 Commodities Forecast by Solidecn.com

DE 30​


German DAX rallied over the past two days, adding almost 2% over Wednesday and Thursday combined. The upward move was being continued on the futures market during the Asian session today as optimism over possible agreement on US debt ceiling drove equities higher. As a result, DAX futures (DE30) briefly traded above 16,300 pts mark at fresh all-time highs.

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Taking a look at DE30 chart at H1 interval, we can see that the upward move on the German index accelerated after breaking above the 15,810-16,085 pts range. While the index pulled back a bit after reaching a fresh ATH, there is still some room for gains from a technical point of view. A textbook range of the upside breakout from the aforementioned 15,810-16,085 pts trading range suggests a possibility of the upward move to as high as 16,355 pts - or around 0.6% higher from current market price.

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NATGAS


NATGAS drops 1.5% today but weather forecasts suggest potential for more gains

NATGAS rallied yesterday, supported by:​
  • Smaller-than-expected natural gas inventory build reported by EIA. Inventories rose 99 bcf while the market expected 110 bcf increase. Gain, however, was in-line with 5-year average​
  • New weather forecast for summer period from NOAA was released and it show potential for a very high temperatures in key states in terms of demand for air conditioning​
  • Moreover, some factors that could also trigger upward pressure surfaced recently:​
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  • Gas output in Canada is dropping hard. Drilling activity in Canada started to decline much earlier than in the United States. This suggests that US output may also drop significantly in coming weeks given recent declines in the number of active gas rigs​
  • Comparative inventories are at cyclical highs, what may be seen as a contrarian signal​
  • Freeport LNG terminal exports up to 2.3 billion cubic feet of gas per day, reaching new record levels​
  • Of course, one should keep in mind that contract rollover will occur next week (currently around +$0.12 per MMBTu). Given current NATGAS prices, it would result in a test of the $2.70 per MMBTu area. Prices jumped around $0.15 per MMBTu following the latest rollover but launched another downward impulse later on. One cannot rule out the situation of sellers returning to the market after the contract rolls over and prices at near-term contract are once again attractive for bears. On the other hand, seasonal patterns suggest that NATGAS may be set to rebound after reaching local low in mid-June.​
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Natural gas inventories increase in line with seasonal patterns. Comparative inventories are at extremely high levels (inverted axis), signaling a potential local low on natural gas prices. Nevertheless, prices traded sideways for as much as 6 months after similar situations back in 2017 and 2020.

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NATGAS pulls back from the $2.6 per MMBTu area. Range of the largest correction in the current upward impulse suggests a possibility of price dropping to around $2.4 per MMBTu. On the other hand, such a correction may not occur ahead of contract rollover (May 23, 2023). Seasonal patterns suggest a potential for range trading until June 3, followed by small correction and significant gains starting from around June 18 when demand for air conditioning increases due to the beginning of summer period.​
 

Oil​


WTI (OIL.WTI) launched a new week's trade lower as failure to make progress on the US debt ceiling over the weekend brings us closer to the US default. On top of that, the Chinese decision to ban Micron chips is also risking reigniting tensions between the US and China.

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META.US


The European Union, on behalf of the Irish Data Protection Commission, has imposed a record €1.2bn ($1.3bn) fine on Meta Platforms (META.US), managed by Mark Zuckerberg, for data privacy breaches. The European body also set a categorical ban on sending user data. Within the next five months, the company is to suspend all future transfers of personal data to the US and US security services and six months to stop unlawful processing, including storage, of EU users' personal data.

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The decision itself, however, does not directly cover the Instagram and WhatsApp platforms. The move by the control authorities in this case was itself foreseeable, however, in view of the fact that Meta, the US and the European Union have already had disputes in the past on the data line. The current decision and, in particular, the implemented preparatory period for the cessation of data transfer to the US, gives space for the US and the Union to modify their policies regarding the sharing of user data. Discussions on this matter are already underway and are expected to be implemented operationally in the coming months.

Meta Platforms is expected to appeal the fine.

Following the fine, Meta's shares are losing more than 1.2% before the open.​
 
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Bitcoin

  • US debt deal was reached during a weekend​
  • Beijing "Web3 Innovation and Development White Paper" introduction​
Bitcoin experienced a price increase over the week, reaching above $28,000, attributed to various factors. One significant development was the announcement of a debt ceiling deal by the White House, which boosted market sentiment and led to a 4.9% increase in Bitcoin and a 4.9% increase in Ether. Additionally, a Chinese governmental agency released a white paper outlining suggestions for China's Web3 policy, signaling progress in a country that has been reevaluating its approach to cryptocurrencies.

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The release of the white paper in Beijing coincided with new digital asset regulations in Hong Kong, sparking further interest in China's stance toward the crypto industry. The document, titled "Web3 Innovation and Development White Paper," recognizes Web3 technology as an essential aspect of future Internet industry development. Beijing's municipal government aims to establish the city as a prominent global innovation hub for the digital economy, allocating a minimum of 100 million yuan annually until 2025 for this purpose. As a reminder, retail investors in Hong Kong are allowed to trade cryptocurrencies starting from the 1st of June.​
 

Crude Oil


Brent crude is losing 4% today, which can be linked to several factors. The US media is talking about uncertainty regarding the debt ceiling agreement, as several Republicans have made it clear that they will not support the bill. In addition, there are increasing question marks over China and further demand growth.

Nonetheless, the key factor that is likely to support price declines at this point is the disagreement within the enlarged OPEC+ cartel. Recently, Saudi Arabia's oil minister warned contract sellers about the possibility of OPEC+ action, which could suggest another potential production cut. On the other hand, Russia's energy minister says Russia is happy with the current course of events and prices. However, there have been signs that Russia may also be producing and exporting more than the internal arrangements in the cartel. This threatens a potential 'break-up' of the entire agreement, which could lead to a return of supply of as much as 2 million barrels per day, although of course one has to bear in mind the limited capacity for such a rapid increase in production. Nevertheless, recently, Iraq or the UAE were said to have hinted that they would like to produce more.

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Strong declines in Brent crude were triggered by uncertainty about the sustainability of the OPEC+ agreement and uncertainty about demand from China or globally if the US were to eventually go bankrupt. The nearest support is around USD 68 per barrel, where the 23.6 retracement is located.​
 

Oil ​


Oil prices have made an almost complete U-turn, recovering the majority of losses made earlier today. While there was no specific news driving the rebound, Reuters survey based on secondary sources suggested that OPEC countries were over complying with pledged output cuts. While countries like Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and United Arab Emirates were mostly in-line with pledged cuts, there were a number of countries that have cut more than pledged. Iraq and Nigeria are of note here as they are significant oil producers and their compliance with pledged cuts stood at 151% and 448% respectively. Combined output of 13 OPEC countries was 460k bpd lower in May than in April. Moreover, output data for April was revised lower by 150k bpd.

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Taking a look at OIL.WTI chart at H1 interval, we can see that price plunged to $67.00 area earlier today, where early-May lows are located. However, buyers took over control afterwards and a strong upward move was launched. While OIL.WTI is still trading around 1% lower on the day, it has been dropping as much as 4% earlier. Continuation of the upward move will, however, depend on whether buyers manage to push the price above the $69.45-69.65 area, where the upper limit of a local market geometry can be found.​
 
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Gold

Gold prices experienced some interesting price moves yesterday. The moves were interesting as they stood in contrast to what incoming data implied in terms on next Fed moves. A very disappointing Chicago PMI reading that should be seen as dovish from Fed's point of view, led to an increase in gold prices as would be expected but release of a higher-than-expected JOLTS data that triggered a jump in Fed rate hike pricing failed to reverse those moves. Gold held firm following hawkish JOLTS data. Gains on the gold market started to be erased later on after… dovish comments from Fed Harker and Jefferson, that led to a drop in Fed rate hike pricing. Harker and Jefferson suggested that Fed may skip a rate hike at June meeting to better assess incoming data.

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Taking a look at GOLD chart at H1 interval, we can see that price of the precious metal attempted to break above the $1,973 resistance zone and started to pull back later on. GOLD dropped below 50- and 200-hour moving average this morning and an attempt to break below $1,955 support can be observed at press time. While Fed members hinted that US central bank may keep rates unchanged at the June meeting, there is still a lot of data to be released until the meeting. Traders will be offered US jobs market data this week (ADP - today at 1:15 pm BST, NFP - Friday at 1:30 pm BST) and should it come in strong, Fed rate hike odds may jump again and potentially exert pressure on gold prices. US CPI inflation data for May will be released on June 13, 2023 - one day ahead of FOMC June decision.​
 
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US30

US indices launched this week's trading on the back foot and moved lower on Tuesday and Wednesday. However, tides turned yesterday as it became more and more likely that Fed will keep rates unchanged at June meeting (13-14 June, 2023). Comments from Fed Harker and Jefferson signaling that FOMC is in position to skip a rate hike at the June meeting led to a slump in rate hike bets on money markets. Currently, markets price in just a 25% chance of 25 basis point rate hike at June meeting while those odds were as high as 70% following release of JOLTS data on Wednesday. NFP report for May, which is scheduled to be released at 1:30 pm BST today, will be watched closely but it seems that Fed members have already made up their minds when it comes to the June decision and therefore jobs data may not have too much of an impact.

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Taking a look at Dow Jones futures (US30) at D1 interval, we can see that the index made another test of the 32,900 pts support zone and has once again failed to break below. The aforementioned support zone is marked with previous price reactions, 200-session moving average (purple line), upward trendline and the 50% retracement of the downward move launched at the beginning of 2022. Positive demand-side reaction to this hurdle suggests that the index may be set for a bigger recovery move. The first resistance zone to watch should current gains extend can be found in the 33,700 pts area, marked with 61.8% retracement.​
 

Crude Oil​


Weekend meeting of OPEC+ group was watched closely but was not expected to result in any changes to the level of agreed output cuts. This turned out to be partially true. While OPEC+ decided not to deepen output cuts, it has agreed to extend the current output cut agreement through 2024. However, Saudi Arabia announced that it will make a voluntary output cut of 1 million barrels per day. The cut was announced for July only but Saudi officials already warned that it may be extended if the situation requires it.

Baseline production levels were adjusted for 2024 and it could be seen as somewhat bearish. This is because production quotas were redistributed from countries that struggled to meet production targets to countries that have spare production capacity. As a result, it may lead to better compliance with production targets across the group and, in turn, to higher combined production.

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Taking a look at WTI chart (OIL.WTI) at D1 interval, we can see that the price launched a new week with a big bullish price gap. While Brent (OIL) jumped around 1.7% at the beginning of a new week, WTI opened with an around-4% price gap. OIL.WTI jumped above the $73-74 per barrel resistance zone and tested 50-session moving average (green line). However, bulls failed to break above it and gains started to be erased as the Asian session progressed. Price has almost completely filled the bullish price gap but has bounced off the daily lows since.​
 

Massive Crypto Sell-Off!​


Binancecoin loses almost 10% and Bitcoin falls by more than 5% amid the problems of the Binance exchange in the US

Cryptocurrencies are clearly in a downturn. Bitcoin is losing over 5%, and Binance Coin is down nearly 10% following the news that the SEC was planning to sue the largest cryptocurrency exchange, Binance, due to uncovered irregularities. Binance is accused of violating securities market regulations, conducting unregistered securities sales (the SEC considers cryptocurrencies as securities), and operating an unregistered securities exchange in the United States. Additionally, the SEC reportedly indicated that the exchange was managing its clients' funds, including secretly transferring funds to an entity controlled by the company's founder.

It is important to note that this is not the first time U.S. authorities have sued Binance. The CFTC had previously taken similar action. The United States likely wants to prevent investments in cryptocurrencies through the Binance exchange as quickly as possible.

In response to these reports, we are witnessing significant drops in cryptocurrencies and, above all, a breakout from the recent sideways trend. As we can see, positive sentiments in the U.S. stock market or commodity market no longer have a positive impact on cryptocurrencies.

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Binancecoin is at its lowest since early March, as is Bitcoin. On the other hand, we are seeing further increases on the US100.​
 

USDCNH


The USDCNH pair and the CHNComp contract reacted with rises in the face of the announcement of the Chinese authorities' order to cut deposit interest rates to stimulate the economy. Yields on Chinese debt securities lost following the above announcement.

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State-owned banks, including Bank of China Ltd, Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd and Bank of Communications Co, were ordered to cut interest rates on a range of products, including by 5 basis points on demand deposits and by at least 10 basis points on three-year and five-year time deposits, anonymous sources said.​
 

Bitcoin


According to Bloomberg, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has sued the largest U.S. cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase in a New York court. Bitcoin is slipping below yesterday's lows. Shares of Coinbase (COIN.US) are losing nearly 11% before the open. The market is gaining confidence that a coordinated action by US regulators is taking place. Sizable pre-opening sell-offs are also noted in the stocks of other cryptocurrency companies like Microstrategy (MSTR.US) and HIVE Blockchain (HIVE.US).

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Berenberg analysts estimates that SEC moves may cost at least 37% of Coinbase net revenues. The key for the company may be to change business model and relocate from the US.​
 

Russel 2000 rallies 2.5% as banks outperform​


Wall Street indices managed to recover from early losses and are posting small gains at press time. Russell 2000 is an exception as the index is not posting a small gain but a massive one. The index is trading 2.5% higher at press time with all 11 sector groups trading higher. Biggest gains, however, can be spotted on Financials subindex. The move high in financials is driven by banks, with regional banking shares rallying today. The move is somewhat puzzling as there was no news that could justify outperformance of the sector. It looks like a relief rally following struggles of regional banks in recent months.

However, it should be said that banks have been underperformers on Wall Street yesterday and this underperformance was a result of WSJ report suggesting that US regulators are considering raising capital requirements for banks by 20%. This story has been neither confirmed, nor denied by US authorities but it looks like shares in regional banks are trying to erase part of recent weakness today.

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Russell 2000 futures (US2000) rally today and has managed to climb above 1,845 pts resistance zone earlier during the session. The index is trading at a 3-month high. The next resistance zone to watch can be found in the 1,885 pts area.​
 

Cardano

  • The seventh-largest cryptocurrency on the market, Cardano (ADA), is falling to levels not seen since late March. ​
  • According to the SEC, Cardano is a security, and the Robinhood exchange is considering delisting some of the cryptocurrencies designated as securities by regulators - to avoid potential regulatory problems​
  • Some investors accuse the project of a lack of clear growth despite a nearly $13 billion market capitalization​
Onchcain data shows higher activity and accumulation by larger investors
Project developer Charles Hoskinson indicated that the project is developing at the right pace and much of the developers' work is not visible to the 'naked eye' from the outside. More recently, Cardano has been working on the Marlowe project, which could potentially facilitate the entire construction and bring smart contract adoption to the financial sector. The IOHK organization behind Cardano has indicated that Marlowe has already been audited both internally and externally to meet security requirements.

The regulator claims that Cardano is only ostensibly decentralized while nearly 17% of the supply is in the hands of a few entities that regularly conducted sales to finance the development and marketing of the project - through unregistered sales of securities. Cardano was thus supposed to meet the conditions of the so-called Howey test: "investment of assets, in a joint venture, with the expectation of profit derived from the efforts of others."

According to IntoTheBlock, Cardano saw an increase in large transactions over the past 24 hours where the total number of Cardano token (ADA) trades increased by 5.8 million to 63.57 million Cardano (ADA) . The number of large transactions, above $100,000, increased to 14,780 or (4,790 more than the previous day). Buying activity in terms of Cardano inflows into large portfolios also increased by 123.6% yesterday compared to June 5 (part of the transactions were due to portfolio splits - a total of 6.61 million net inflows).

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CARDANO price again fell below the SMA200 (red line) suggesting a possible test of $0.30 where we see previous price reactions and the 71.6 Fibonacci retracement of the December 2022 upward wave. The chart also somewhat resembles an head and shoulders formation, with the neckline running through at the aforementioned $0.30 level.​
 

US2000​


The Russell 2000 Index of U.S. smaller-cap companies (US2000) has been on an upward surge for several days. In yesterday's session, it rose nearly 1.8% against a 1.7% decline in the Nasdaq, weakness in the S&P500 and the Dow index. Driven by oversold regional bank stocks in recent weeks, the benchmark has risen less than 7% since the beginning of the year, a weak performance against the major indexes. By comparison, it has gained nearly 8% in the past five days alone. Today's claims reading at 2:30 pm could mean additional volatility for the index.

For now, the market is reassuring itself that the US economy remains quite strong (although industry is sending signals of weakness) with a strong labor market, and in view of consumer strength, revenues of listed companies are not in danger of collapsing at least in the foreseeable period. The increases in the major indexes are thus 'spilling over' slowly to smaller companies that have been bypassed for months, which is also helped by the Fed's rate hike cycle coming to an end. The Russell sub-index, which includes energy companies and banks, has recently lagged behind the sub-index linked to growth stocks (the largest disparity in more than 20 years) - primarily due to the frenzy related to AI and the strength of the largest BigTech companies (a situation reversed in comparison to 2022). In recent days, value companies from the Russell especially bank shares, have closed the gap somewhat by driving the benchmark.

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US2000 broke out above the 38.2 Fibonacci retracement of the March 2020 upward wave and a rise above 1900 points could open the way for the bulls to reach the psychological resistance of 2000 and 2100 points, where the 23.6 Fibonacci retracement is visible. The index has formed a strong base near 1750 points, the strength of which has been 'tested' by the price several times - each time the bulls have managed to bounce higher. In the bearish scenario 1750 - 1800 points zone may be tested again.​
 
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US100​


Unemployment claims in the US surprised with an increase. In the first reaction, US100 is rising after the reading.​
  • Unemployment claims: 261k Expected: 235k Previously: 232k.​
  • Continuing claims: 1757k Expected: 1802k Previously: 1795k.​
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The very large surprise in the increase in applications for benefits may mean that the unemployed in the economy are increasing rapidly, but the drop in continuing applications reflects still strong employment in the economy. After the reading, the market reassured itself that Fed rates are unlikely to be raised in June.

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The market is pricing a Fed pause in June with a 72.5% probability after the claims reading. The odds of a 25 bp hike fell about 6%, to 27.5%, compared to yesterday's forecasts.​
 
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JAP225


After a two-day decline from a 33-year peak, Japan's Nikkei share average rebounded on Friday. The Nikkei index surged 1.61% to 32,149.76 by midday, recovering nearly 4% from Wednesday's 33-year high. Index is on track to complete a nine-week advance, marking its longest winning streak in over five years. Since June 2, it has climbed nearly 2%, extending its advance since April 7 to 17%.

From the fundamental perspective, Nikkei performance is boosted by Japanese GDP data, which showed a growth at an annualized rate of 2.7% in the first quarter of the year, surpassing the earlier estimates of 1.6% made last month.

The two consecutive days of decline were likely just profit-taking from investors after a solid period of index appreciation. Now, with the indexes rebounding, it is a positive sign that bulls are still in power and set the stage for a continuation in the next week. Today, significant contributors to the Nikkei's performance included Uniqlo brand owner Fast Retailing, which jumped 3.85%, and air-conditioning maker Daikin Industries, which rose 3.09%.

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The Nikkei 225 (JAP225) index is currently showing a strong bullish momentum, with its price standing at 32,159 points. This comes after the index rebounded from a significant support level at 31,500 points, which indicates a bullish sentiment in the market. If the bullish momentum maintains its strength, we could see the index aiming to test the recent peak at 32,770 points. However, it's important to consider potential downside risks as well. If the bullish momentum weakens, we could see a correction towards the next lower level of 30,600 points.​
 
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Palladium


Palladium prices have been falling for quite some time - the main reason being an expected oversupply of the metal next year. One of the world's largest producers of the metal, Russian giant Nornickel estimates that the palladium market will reach a surplus of up to 300,000 ounces in 2024 against an estimated 200,000 ounce deficit in 2023. The company accounts for 40% of global palladium production. Among other things, palladium is used to reduce exhaust fumes in automobiles.

According to Nornickel, 80% of the world's palladium supply is absorbed by the automotive industry, where demand for palladium is expected to grow by 1% y/y in 2023. On the other hand, however, electric cars where palladium is not used because they do not emit exhaust fumes are growing in popularity. In addition, manufacturers are increasingly replacing palladium with cheaper substitutes. Increased consumption of palladium in 2022 and 2023 has resulted in the sale of accumulated stocks by automotive companies, but these sales are expected to end in the second half of the year as companies potentially empty their inventories. Nornickel also expects 180,000 tons of surplus nickel in 2024.

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PALLADIUM is slipping towards $1,300 per ounce and has fallen below the 71.6 Fibonacci retracement of the upward wave from January 2016. From this level, declines may deepen even to $1100 per ounce where previous price reactions are located.​
 
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Oil


Oil is taking a hit at the beginning of a new week. Brent (OIL) and WTI (OIL.WTI) are trading around 1.5% lower at press time. Recent OPEC actions and announcements provided only a short-term boost for prices and oil quickly resumed pullback. Brent dropped and reached the lowest level since the beginning of June today. There is no strong, clear reason behind the move lower today. However, some news surfaced recently that may support bears today.

Iranian authorities made some upbeat comments on possible agreement between Iran and the West that may lead to a lifting of sanctions on Iranian oil. However, it should be noted that negotiations have been going on for years now and similarly positive comments did not lead to any breakthrough earlier. Apart from that, Goldman Sachs slashed its December 2023 Brent price forecast from $95 to $86 per barrel, citing increased recessionary fears as well as higher output in Iran, Venezuela and Russia as reasons.

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Taking a look at OIL chart at H4 interval, we can see that the price launched this week's trading with a bearish price gap and moved lower to test the $74 support zone. At first it looked like bulls may manage to halt sell-off there but selling resumed and OIL slumped below. Brent is quoted in the $73 per barrel area now and trades less than 1% higher month-to-date after gaining as much as 8% MTD earlier. The next support zone to watch can be found in the $72.50 area and is marked with local lows from mid-March, early-May and early-June 2023.​
 
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