Two weeks ago, WTI crude for May delivery tumbled deep into negative territory. Some could argue the writing was on the wall when major #African producers failed to secure buyers from staple and long-haul markets, against a backdrop of severely limited storage capacity. Even now, markets in contango offer little comfort to naturally-long or speculatively-short participants.
Elsewhere, in #cotton, sagging global demand and more competitive pricing for #polyester (on account of low oil prices) have collapsed markets. Meanwhile, cotton merchandisers and distributors are having to pay more for storage and debt servicing, compounding the adverse effects on an already-fragmented supply chain; #Coffee could be a surprise winner as COVID-19-related labour shortages undermine harvests with at least a temporary uplift in prices.
As one cheeky airline captain once announced on a bumpy Florida flight… “Buckle-up chicks!”