Commodities
Commodity markets move on supply, demand, inventories, and expectations. Use these guides to understand the key drivers, major reports, and common regime shifts that affect energy, metals, and agriculture.
How Commodity Markets Connect to Forex and Equities
Commodity markets do not exist in isolation — they are deeply interconnected with currency markets, equity indices, and bond yields. Oil prices directly influence the Canadian dollar, Norwegian krone, and Russian ruble. Gold correlates inversely with the US dollar and moves with real interest rates. Agricultural commodity prices affect emerging market currencies in food-importing nations. Understanding these connections allows traders to use commodity data as a leading indicator for currency and equity positions. The fundamental analysis of commodities focuses on supply-demand balances, weather patterns, geopolitical disruptions, central bank reserves (for gold), and technological shifts (such as the energy transition).
Practical Example
Crude oil prices rise 20% over two months due to OPEC production cuts. A trader anticipating this move would go long CAD/JPY (Canada exports oil, Japan imports it) — a trade that captures the commodity move through the forex market. Simultaneously, energy sector stocks rally while airline stocks decline. Understanding these commodity-driven correlations opens up multiple trading opportunities across different asset classes from a single fundamental catalyst.
Articles in this section
Energy Supply & Demand
Learn how energy supply and demand drive commodity prices using tightness, spare capacity and inventories. Includes diagrams, teaching notes, checklist and FAQs...
Read article →
Gold Safe Haven Appeal
Learn why gold behaves as a safe haven, how real yields and the US dollar affect it, and how to apply a practical trading framework. Includes diagrams and check...
Read article →
Mining Output Reports
Learn how mining output reports affect metals prices through supply expectations, disruptions, and marginal cost. Includes diagrams and checklist....
Read article →
Natural Gas Storage
Learn how natural gas storage affects prices using seasonality, injections/withdrawals and storage vs average. Includes diagrams and practical checklist....
Read article →
OPEC Production Decisions
Learn how OPEC decisions affect oil prices via supply expectations, compliance and surprise factor. Includes diagrams, teaching notes, checklist and FAQs....
Read article →
Seasonal Agricultural Patterns
Learn why agricultural commodities are seasonal, when weather risk is highest, and how stocks-to-use changes price sensitivity. Includes diagrams and checklist....
Read article →
US Crude Inventories
Learn how US crude inventory reports move markets, what components matter, and how to trade surprises responsibly. Includes diagrams and checklist....
Read article →
Weather Impact on Commodities
Learn how weather affects energy and agricultural commodities, why markets move on forecast updates, and how to manage whipsaw risk. Includes diagrams and check...
Read article →