World commodity prices mostly rose this week as markets digested a mixed outlook for the global economy.
World economic recovery is slowing faster than expected and extra stimulus from governments may be needed, although another recession remains “unlikely,” the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development said on Thursday.
OIL: World oil prices rose slightly thanks to supportive data and a pipeline closure late in the week.
By late on Friday on London’s Intercontinental Exchange, Brent North Sea crude for delivery in October rose to US$77.63 from US$77.24 a week earlier.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, Texas light sweet crude for October jumped to US$75.86 a barrel compared with US$75.07.
PRECIOUS METALS: Gold again got close to its record high and silver hit the highest level for more than two years before falling on profit-taking.
This week, silver hit US$20.15 an ounce — the highest point since March 2008.
By late on Friday on the London Bullion Market, gold rose to US$1,246.50 an ounce from US$1,240.50 a week earlier.
Silver rallied to US$19.90 an ounce from US$19.66.
On the London Platinum and Palladium Market, platinum dropped to US$1,545 an ounce from US$1,553.
Palladium fell to US$518 an ounce from US$524.
BASE METALS: Base or industrial metals traded mixed.
By late on Friday on the London Metal Exchange, copper for delivery in three months fell to US$7,555 a tonne from US$7,697.
Three-month aluminum fell to US$2,105 a tonne from US$2,161.
GRAINS AND SOYA: Maize prices hit the highest levels for nearly two years on robust demand and smaller than expected US output.
Prices hit US$4.795 a bushel on Friday in Chicago — the highest level since October 2008.
By Friday on the Chicago Board of Trade, wheat for delivery in December fell to US$7.28 a bushel from US$7.41 the previous week.
Maize for December gained to US$4.74 a bushel from US$4.64.
November-dated soyabean meal — used in animal feed — edged up to US$10.36 a bushel from US$10.35.
COFFEE: Coffee futures struck new 13-year pinnacles in New York.
Prices hit US$1.9865 a pound (0.45kg) in New York — the highest level since 1997.
By Friday on the New York Board of Trade (NYBOT), Arabica for delivery in December rose to US$1.9260 a pound from US$1.8565 the previous week.
On LIFFE — London’s futures exchange — Robusta for November fell to US$1,588 a tonne from US$1,630.
COCOA: Prices touched fresh one-year lows on concerns over the harvest from leading producer Ivory Coast.
Prices hit £1,846 a tonne in London and US$2,615 a tonne in New York — the lowest points since September and July last year respectively.
By Friday on NYBOT, cocoa for delivery in December fell to US$2,641 a tonne from US$2,748 a week earlier.
On LIFFE, cocoa for December dropped to £1,853 a tonne from £1,953.
MORE VISITORS: The Tourism Administration said that it is seeing positive prospects in its efforts to expand the tourism market in North America and Europe Taiwan has been ranked as the cheapest place in the world to travel to this year, based on a list recommended by NerdWallet. The San Francisco-based personal finance company said that Taiwan topped the list of 16 nations it chose for budget travelers because US tourists do not need visas and travelers can easily have a good meal for less than US$10. A bus ride in Taipei costs just under US$0.50, while subway rides start at US$0.60, the firm said, adding that public transportation in Taiwan is easy to navigate. The firm also called Taiwan a “food lover’s paradise,” citing inexpensive breakfast stalls
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
CROSS-STRAIT: The vast majority of Taiwanese support maintaining the ‘status quo,’ while concern is rising about Beijing’s influence operations More than eight out of 10 Taiwanese reject Beijing’s “one country, two systems” framework for cross-strait relations, according to a survey released by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday. The MAC’s latest quarterly survey found that 84.4 percent of respondents opposed Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula for handling cross-strait relations — a figure consistent with past polling. Over the past three years, opposition to the framework has remained high, ranging from a low of 83.6 percent in April 2023 to a peak of 89.6 percent in April last year. In the most recent poll, 82.5 percent also rejected China’s
PLUGGING HOLES: The amendments would bring the legislation in line with systems found in other countries such as Japan and the US, Legislator Chen Kuan-ting said Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Kuan-ting (陳冠廷) has proposed amending national security legislation amid a spate of espionage cases. Potential gaps in security vetting procedures for personnel with access to sensitive information prompted him to propose the amendments, which would introduce changes to Article 14 of the Classified National Security Information Protection Act (國家機密保護法), Chen said yesterday. The proposal, which aims to enhance interagency vetting procedures and reduce the risk of classified information leaks, would establish a comprehensive security clearance system in Taiwan, he said. The amendment would require character and loyalty checks for civil servants and intelligence personnel prior to
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