Mining

Iraq's move to seek a higher OPEC production quota represents one of the most politically complex dimensions of the post-conflict Middle East oil supply story, with Baghdad seeking to rapidly recover war-period revenue losses by maximising export volumes.

Platinum's decline below $1,600 an ounce to its lowest level since November 2025 has been driven primarily by macroeconomic headwinds — a surging dollar and Fed rate hike expectations — rather than any deterioration in the metal's fundamental supply-demand balance.

Platinum fell below $1,600 an ounce to its lowest level since November 2025 as the US dollar climbed to a multi-year high and Federal Reserve rate hike expectations intensified following Chair Kevin Warsh's hawkish guidance.

Iron ore futures declined below CNY 740 per ton, hovering near their lowest levels in almost a year as Chinese steel mill profitability fell to approximately 51% and port inventories at Chinese terminals hit a record seasonal high of 160 million tons.

The accelerating resumption of tanker transits through the Strait of Hormuz following the US-Iran interim peace agreement is unwinding a substantial geopolitical risk premium and driving the largest weekly crude price decline in over a month.

With markets pricing an 80% probability of a December Fed rate hike and 63% odds of a September move, monetary policy expectations have overtaken geopolitical risk as the dominant force shaping commodity prices across energy, metals, and agricultural markets.

The US-Iran interim peace agreement, which reopens the Strait of Hormuz and lifts sanctions on Iranian oil exports, represents the most significant geopolitical shift in global energy markets in years, with immediate and cascading effects across multiple asset classes.