28.01.2014 - The problem with commodities
The rise of shale gas and fracking has fuelled debate on one area of commodities, but is the commodity sector starting to see the benefit? The recent news that French firm Total will be the first oil major to explore the UK for shale gas caused a debate on the rights and wrongs of fracking, but the long lead times on developing and eventually exploring this type of fuel mean it is not a short-term commodity play. Not just energy, but the whole of the commodity sector has suffered in the past year, with both oil and gold prices struggling, in spite of the former being expected to benefit from disruptions in the Middle East. The price of Brent Crude oil slipped from its high of $119 a barrel in February 2013 to roughly $107 in January 2014 via a dip as low as $96 in April last year...............................................Full Article: Source
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