Tag Archives: energy
Commodities Take a Break over the Northern Hemisphere Summer
The S&P GSCI fell 2.7% in August; renewed strength in agricultural commodities and the continued rally in natural gas were not sufficient to overcome a late-month decline in oil prices. After eight months, the benchmark commodities index is 32% higher YTD, defying higher interest rates and growing fears of a prolonged global economic slowdown. The…
- Categories Commodities
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- Commodities
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Defensive Dynamics
2022 has been a tumultuous year characterized by reversals, with the S&P 500® down 20% in the first six months of the year and rebounding by 9% in July. In this uncertain environment, seeking defensive exposures via sectors could mitigate portfolio risk, but a nuanced perspective may be required to understand which sectors offer the…
- Categories Equities
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- Equities
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Commodities Rise 36% in 2022 after a Flat July
The S&P GSCI remained flat in July, holding on to a 36% YTD gain despite the bearish sentiment permeating the broad financial markets. This benchmark for world commodities has proven its merit during extremely hot inflation. The Fed hiked interest rates another 75 bps to fight inflation late in the month, but several factors across…
- Categories Commodities
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- Commodities
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These Go to 11: Diversification with S&P 500 Sectors
Many strategies (including passive ones) hold large allocations to Information Technology. A “barbell” approach can mitigate risk from high exposure to one sector by pairing it with another. Do you remember sending your first email? For many, it was likely around the mid-1990s when a “googol” was still 10^100 rather than a verb and the…
- Categories S&P 500 & DJIA
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- S&P 500 & DJIA
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Food and Energy Inflation Concerns Drive Commodities Higher in May
Record inflation prints, export embargos and import bans helped the S&P GSCI, the broad commodities benchmark, to post another monthly gain in May, ending the month up 5.1% and bringing its YTD performance to 47.0%. The ongoing disruptions to the flow of energy and agricultural commodities out of Ukraine and Russia pushed energy and grain…
- Categories Commodities
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- Commodities
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Reductions in Risk Caused Disparate Returns for Commodities in April
Another higher inflation reading helped the S&P GSCI, the broad commodities benchmark, to post an additional 5.1% gain in April. Many market participants realized the U.S. Fed may be behind the curve and have started allocating capital to commodities in 2022. Agriculture and energy continued to outperform last month, while metals and livestock underperformed. Among…
- Categories Commodities
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- Commodities
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Commodities Continued to March Higher Last Month
The S&P GSCI posted its best quarterly return in decades, as inflation continued to post the highest readings in decades. Commodities rose another 9.63% in March after an 8.8% rise in February. Geopolitical conflict and inflation were the two main reasons for the broad-based uptick in commodities prices (see Exhibit 1). The S&P GSCI Energy…
- Categories Commodities
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- Commodities
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Oil, Gas, and ESG: S&P Europe 350 ESG Index Increased Sensitivity (or Lack Thereof)
Commodities crushed it in 2021, with stretched supply chains a driving factor. The strong performance didn’t stop as we entered 2022. In this blog, we specifically look at crude oil and natural gas, which have outperformed the European equity market by some distance since the start of 2021 (see Exhibit 1), and what this can…
- Categories Commodities, ESG
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- Commodities, ESG
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Commodities on the Front Foot in January
The strong inflation tailwind that supported commodities in 2021 has bled into 2022, as the S&P GSCI started the year on the front foot, up 11.6% in January. In contrast, the S&P 500® fell 5.2% over the same period. Inflation has traditionally helped commodity markets. Commodities have also historically been a good hedge against inflation….
- Categories Commodities
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Commodities Crushed It in 2021
The market standard commodities benchmark, the S&P GSCI, crushed it in 2021, rising 40.35% and outpacing other similar commodity indices and asset classes, as high and rising inflation provided a great backdrop for this inflation-sensitive asset class. Commodities finished strong in December, rising 7.59% over the month as energy bounced back and Omicron COVID-19 variant…
- Categories Commodities
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