Commodities: Crude schleps south amid spectres of oversupply, slowing growth

Crude oil futures continued their southbound schlep on Thursday afternoon as traders remained haunted by the twin spectres of oversupply and slowing global growth.

At 15:09 GMT, Nymex-priced West Texas Intermediate was down 1.37% to $44.65 a barrel, while Intercontinental-listed Brent dropped 0.88% to $45.95 a barrel.

This after a run-up on Wednesday in the wake of Donald Trump's shock-to-many win in the US presidential election.

"Oil continues to be dogged by persistent oversupply concerns while fears over slowing global growth have sparked discussions of a potential decline in demand," said FXTM's Lukman Otunuga.

"This terrible combination of oversupply anxieties and tepid demand concerns may be the ingredients needed for sellers to send WTI back below $40," the research analyst said.

Investors were obviously cautious ahead of the next OPEC meeting on 30 November, and questions lingering on whether the cartel would be able to strike a successful freeze deal.

In its latest monthly report, released on Thursday, the International Energy Agency said that if OPEC failed to agree a cut in November then "the market will remain in surplus throughout the year [...] if the supply surplus persists in 2017, there must be some risk of prices falling back.”

"From a technical standpoint bears need to conquer $44 for a further decline towards $43," Otunuga said in a statement.

Also weighing on prices, as of 1635 GMT the US dollar index was edging higher by 0.34% to 98.96.

Meantime, metals prices were -- excluding perceived safe-haven gold -- mostly rising.

Comex-quoted Gold was down 0.44% to $1267.9 an ounce, which was some distance of the highs it hit on Wednesday when defensive-asset hungry traders pushed it higher.

"Risk aversion amid the uncertainty should clearly support gold but market sensitivity continues to direct investors to riskier assets consequently leaving the zero-yielding metal vulnerable to losses," said Otunuga.

"Gold may maintain ground in the new trading week as participants reassess the conditions of the global financial landscape. From a technical standpoint, bulls must break back above $1285 for a further incline towards $1308," he added.

On Comex, silver was up 0.69% to $18.51 an ounce and copper was up 3.58% to 254.75 cents a pound.

London Metals Exchange prices on three-month metals were mostly higher: copper rose 3.39% to $5413 a MT, aluminum gained 1.27% to $1753 a MT and zinc added 0.48% to $2490 a MT, but tin shed 1.25% to $21,275 a MT.

Rabobank Financial Markets Research said commodities such as iron ore and copper had been spurred higher by hopes of a surge in US building projects.

This, it said, and the resultant stirring of inflation expectations has reinvigorated expectations for a December rate hike after yesterday’s initial doubts.

"The market’s implied probability of a December rate hike by the Fed gyrated widely yesterday but has settled on the likelihood that a rate hike this year is strong," the Dutch broker said.

In agricultural futures, Chicago Board of Trade-listed corn was up 0.51% to 342.5 cents a bushel at 15:09 GMT, while wheat rose 0.12% to 407.25 cents a bushel.

ICE-quoted cocoa faded 0.57% to $2437 a MT and cotton No.2 rose 1.07% to 69.02 cents a pound. Live cattle was up 0.6% to 104.1 cents a pound.