All Commodities articles – Page 3
-
PodcastGeopolitical friction and the new market reality - Investment Views by Outerblue Convictions
Markets have remained surprisingly resilient despite a fast-moving news cycle, rising geopolitical tensions and growing uncertainty around the outlook for growth and inflation. In this episode of Outerblue Convictions, host Swaha Pattanaik speaks with Monica Defend, Head of the Amundi Investment Institute, following the IMF spring meetings in Washington to discuss the structural shifts now shaping markets and what they mean for investors.
-
InsightThe battery storage revolution builds economic resilience
Volatility has become a defining feature of global energy markets. From the Strait of Hormuz to Ukraine, geopolitical tensions are driving price instability, inflation, and industrial disruption, forcing a re-think of how energy systems are built. In the current landscape of disruption and uncertainty, simply building more renewable capacity isn’t enough. The real challenge is creating energy systems that are not just green, but truly resilient, flexible and less exposed to geopolitical shocks.
-
White papersCIO Weekly: Japan Shows Resilience
Japan’s energy import dependence makes it one of the conflict’s more exposed markets. Yet its short-term resilience is high, and the longer-term investment case remains attractive.
-
White papersUS equities hit new highs
US stocks climbed to a new record this week, supported by several factors. Firstly, as investors look for a swift resolution of the Iran crisis, strong corporate earnings boosted confidence, with 80% of S&P 500 companies that have reported first-quarter results having beaten estimates so far. At sectoral level, technology has regained leadership, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index posting a notably strong performance.
-
White papersMiddle Eastern Conflict and Implications for Asian Energy Policy
Asia, including developed markets such as Japan and Korea, is hit hardest by the Middle East energy supply shock as Hormuz flows have largely ceased. ~90 per cent of exports were Asia-bound, and Platts Dubai/Oman now trades at a 10–20 per cent premium to Brent/WTI.
-
Asset Manager NewsResponse to inflation pressures - Kempen SDG Farmland Fund
The shift away from decades of low-inflation and a highly globalised economy represents a structural change in the macro-economic environment.
-
White papersWater: The hidden constraint shaping the digital economy
Structural megatrends are pressuring water resources, increasing scarcity and challenging long‑term sustainability and economic growth. This creates opportunities for investors to invest in companies providing solutions, ranging from upstream activities such as procurement & equipment, mid‑stream production & distribution, to downstream operation & end use.
-
White papersCapital Market Assumptions 2026
The global economy is moving through a structural regime shift characterised by geo-economic fragmentation, climate risks from a delayed energy transition, and the increasing adoption of artificial intelligence (AI). Countries are increasingly pivoting towards strategic autonomy to adapt to this new regime.
-
White papersCross Asset Investment Strategy - April 2026
Topic of the month - Asia and the energy shock
-
White papersAsia and the energy shock
Asia is exposed to the Middle East conflict and the resulting rise in oil and gas prices. Most countries in the region are net energy importers (Malaysia is a notable exception). Even if the pass‑through to headline inflation remains limited, sustaining cost‑of‑living support to shield household purchasing power will be expensive for governments.
-
White papersGold: a correction driven by positioning, not fundamentals
Gold has undergone a meaningful sell-off in recent weeks, but we believe the move has been driven more by a repricing of short-term macro fears than by any deterioration in the metal’s medium-term fundamentals.
-
White papersThe oil shock: From higher inflation to lower growth
Europe’s growth story is gaining real momentum, and this time, the fiscal firepower behind it is hard to dismiss. From Germany’s historic infrastructure and defence spending surge to spread compression in Spain and Italy, the macro backdrop across Europe is shifting in ways that matter for fixed income investors. Read the full macro outlook to see where we see the most compelling opportunities across European bonds and what the outlook means for your portfolio.
-
White papersGold rush or fool’s gold? Three views on surging prices
With gold prices rising to record highs over the past three years, investors have increasingly turned their attention to this ancient store of wealth. What is driving the rapid increases, especially at a time when stocks and bonds have also generally done well?
-
White papersOil prices threaten the tax tailwind
Last year’s One Big Beautiful Bill is set to deliver a powerful fiscal tailwind. Yet this stimulus is at risk of being undermined by higher oil prices resulting from the Middle East conflict, as higher energy prices effectively act as a tax increase on households. If crude prices settle around $90 per barrel, they could fully erode the benefits from the OBBBA.
-
White papersWhat the global housing shortage (and recovery) means for natural capital investment
The world needs more housing, and the math behind that shortage is staggering. Across the U.S., Canada, Australia, the U.K. and the EU alone, an estimated 5.1 million new housing units per year are needed just to close the gap. For timberland investors, that demand tells a compelling story about where wood consumption is headed. Read the full paper to explore the connection between the global housing shortage and the long-term case for natural capital investment.
-
White papersISA Quick Take: The Iran war, four weeks on
In our March 6th ISA Quick Take, “Real estate implications of conflict in the Middle East”, we argued that the impact of the war in the Middle East would depend on its duration, and in particular, how long the Strait of Hormuz remains blocked.
-
White papersThe Scarcity Trade: Why Critical Metals Are the Real AI Play
Commodities are entering a new structural phase defined by scarcity, geopolitics and surging demand for the metals underpinning AI, electrification and defence. Yet financial markets remain largely unprepared for the physical supply constraints required to build it — creating a compelling opportunity: critical metals offer both return potential and a natural hedge to AI risk.
-
White papersMetals rally provides extra shine to EM debt
Soaring gold and copper prices set to deliver a further boost to emerging market economies this year.
-
White papersMapping the fallout: Iran, oil, and global markets
Macro impact: The Iran conflict and risks to the Strait of Hormuz do not yet warrant a major change to our base case macro outlook. Growth adjustments remain limited, inflation has nudged higher, and central banks are broadly in a wait-and-see mode, with policy rates expected to remain largely stable.
-
White papersCross Asset Investment Strategy - March 2026
Topic of the month - Mapping the fallout: Iran, oil, and global markets
