Oil futures began their first operations of the year on the rise, with the North Sea benchmark Brent trading above $ 78.40 a barrel, an increase of 0.69%, while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) was trading at $ 75.88 on barrel, an increase of 0.89 percent.
At the end of 2021, crude oil prices in the international market registered gains, the highest for the WTI, which increased 55.01%, going from 48.52 to 76.99 dollars a barrel. The Mexican export mix closed the year with a rise of 51.17%, going from 47.16 to 71.29 dollars per barrel. Brent closed at 77.78, an increase of 50.15 percent.
Both contracts hit their 2021 high in October, with Brent at $ 86.70, the highest since 2018, and WTI at $ 85.41, its highest since 2014. Prices are expected to continue rising in 2022, as the price increases. demand for jet fuel catches up.
Oil prices were mainly driven by the reactivation of demand due to the end of sanitary restrictions in the middle of the year. On the supply side, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies (OPEC +) only agreed to one prudent reopening of the floodgates each month.
Starting in 2022, the oil markets will closely follow from Tuesday the monthly meeting of OPEC +, which must decide whether or not to maintain its program of progressive easing of its production limits.
Now that oil is hovering around $ 80, OPEC + is likely to stick with its plan to add 400,000 barrels a day of supply in February when they meet on January 4, according to Reuters sources.
Precious metals, disparate
Precious metals started 2022 in the same way they closed in 2021, that is, with different prices.
Gold futures, in operations on Sunday afternoon, Mexico City time, were trading with a slight rise of 0.11% to 1,830.55 dollars an ounce, while silver lost 0.12% trading at 23.32 dollars an ounce.
Gold ended 2021 at $ 1,828.60 an ounce, down 4.46%, registering its biggest annual decline since 2015, affected by the rise in the dollar and as central banks prepare to raise interest rates in order to contain inflation.
Bullion prices fell in 2021 after having gained about 48% during 2019 and 2020, as the global economic recovery reduced demand for the metal as a refuge.
Looking ahead to 2022, while concerns over the effect of the Omicron variant could support gold prices, rising U.S. bond yields could dampen the metal’s appeal, said Han Tan, chief market analyst at Exinity.
At the same time, “gold could see a number of catalysts for substantial gains next year, be it Fed policy blunder, stubbornly high inflation or even a spike in geopolitical tensions,” he added.
Silver fell 12.07% in 2021, trading at 23.38 greenbacks per unit, reflecting its worst performance in seven years.
Copper futures began operations in 2022 with a downward adjustment of 0.01% to $ 4.46 a ton. However, industrial metal prices ended 2021 with their biggest annual rise since 2009, driven by tight supplies and growing demand.
The price of copper in the US market accumulated an increase of 26.44% in the year.
Wenyu Yao, an analyst at ING, said he expects 2022 to be a year of normalization and demand growth to moderate, although limited supply will keep prices high, at least in the short term.
Grains top earnings
The grain futures began their first operations of the year on the rise, led by corn that rose 1.14%, followed by soybeans that increased 1.04%, and ending with wheat that grew 0.67 percent.
These three raw materials posted gains in 2021, in a marketing with strong demand and supply restrictions in some key production areas of the world that propped up markets throughout the year.
Corn futures climbed 22.57% in 2021, keeping pace with the cereal markets, due to a greater rally in the ethanol sector.
Wheat registered an increase of 20.34% during the year, in its fifth consecutive annual gain and the highest since 2010.
Soybeans, which although reached its highest level since 2012 in May, barely advanced 1.03% in 2021.
This was due to an abundant harvest in the United States and a good growth climate in Brazil that put pressure on prices in the fourth quarter. (With information from Reuters)
valeria.lopez@eleconomista.mx