Commodities Focus

Price regulation plays an important political and economic role in emerging countries, and Latin American countries this year have faced oil price volatility that has forced them to look for buffer alternatives. News experts Jeff Mower and Sheky Espejo sat down with pricing experts Maria Jimenez and Sarah Hernandez to discuss how price regulation has been applied in Colombia, Brazil and Mexico and how that has affected domestic and export refined products markets. Related content: Platts Capitol Crude podcast

Demand for moving goods around the world has dramatically fallen as the cost of living rises and consumers start to tighten their belts. However, many shipowners have been left with bumper profits accumulated during the peak. Are freight rates going to continue their downward trend?How will the market react to the upcoming ESG regulations? In the latest Platts Commodities Focus podcast, our container editors take a look at what is to come up as the market embraces new regulations, namely IMO 2023, and the prospect of oversupply in the market given the record-high order book. Stay up to date with our Container Rates content.

As the oil and gas industry works to find its footing in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic it now faces a world transformed, with new risks stemming from Russia’s war in Ukraine and brewing global economic headwinds. In their third quarter earnings, oil industry executives appeared to diverge on their outlooks for the sector. Upstream players, hamstrung by capacity constraints, are maintaining capital discipline in the face of broad uncertainties, while the downstream side of the industry is eyeing ever bullish demand outlooks. Oil editors Chris van Moessner, Starr Spencer, Janet McGurty and Lassana Fisiru sat down to recap the emerging themes and outlooks following S&P Global's coverage of the industry’s third-quarter earnings. Subscribe to Platts Dimensions Pro to learn more about Platts Global Jet Index (PJGLO00) and WTI MEH USG (AAYRG00). 

With Luis Inacio Lula de Silva returning to the presidency in Brazil after 12 years, the agriculture industry anticipates its market fundamentals could be impacted by an increasingly progressive agenda. Some defining issues include how Lula's government will deal with Petrobras' fuel price policy; fuel subsidy mechanisms; regulation of the biodiesel mandate; and the Renovabio program. In this episode, Latin America agriculture experts Beatriz Pupo, Luciana Torrezan and Nicolle Castro discuss the possible impacts of the recent presidential elections on sugar and biofuels -- not only in Brazil, but globally.

Market participants expect a supply glut in 2022-23 amid record Brazilian soybean output forecast by different agencies. If Brazil can produce a huge volume of the oilseed in the upcoming marketing year, that could have major implications for US soybeans exporters and for Chinese demand.  In this podcast, S&P Global Commodity Insights agriculture experts Asim Anand, Rafael Savoia, Pete Meyer and Emerson Wohlenberg break down the possible impacts to the global market. Subscribe to Platts Dimensions Pro for access to assessments and premium content covering SOYBEX FOB Santos (SYBBB00), SOYBEX FOB New Orleans (SYBBI00), China Soybean Gross Crush margin (CSGCD00) and much more.

LNG markets are in the spotlight after the Russia-Ukraine war, with Asia and Europe both competing for limited cargoes.  A harsher than expected winter may trigger unprecedented changes in LNG trade flows and force many Asian governments to implement contingency measures to tackle power outages. In a discussion ahead of the Asia LNG & Hydrogen Gas Markets Conference, S&P Global Commodity Insights' experts Surabhi Sahu, Kenneth Foo and Jeffrey Moore talk about Asia’s LNG winter procurement, benchmark market activity and strategies like fuel switching to mitigate shortages.  Subscribe to Platts Dimensions Pro for access to assessments and premium content covering Platts LNG Japan/Korea DES Spot Cargo (AAOVQ00), LNG West India Marker (AARXS00) and many more.

With global container shipping costs coming down, European polymer markets are seeing offers of material from the Far East rise, adding pressure to prices in an already over supplied environment. Platts Petrochemicals editors Abdulaziz Ehtaiba, Hui Heng and Daniel Pelosi, and Containers editor George Griffiths talk about the logistical landscape and the fallout it is causing in the polymer markets. Price assessments relevant to this episode: PP Homo Inj FD NWE Spot Eur/mt - AALUR00 PP Inj CFR FE Asia - PHBIF00 Platts Container Rate 1 North Asia-UK Continent $/FEU - PCR0100 HDPE Film CFR Far East Asia - AATYE00

As gas supply disruptions send shockwaves across the world, the ability and capacity to store energy has come under close scrutiny. Associate Director Paul Hickin discusses with gas and power editors Stuart Elliott and Kira Savcenko whether Europe has enough energy in reserve to get through the winter, the challenges of providing sufficient back-up from both fossil fuels and alternative sources, the knock-on effects to the rest of the world, and whether we might experience déjà vu this time next year. Related price assessments: Dated Brent: PCAAS00  UK baseload front-month (GBP/MWh): AADGP00  TTF front-month (Eur/MWh): GTFTM01 

Used cooking oil (UCO) or vegetable oil unfit for human consumption has found a new life as feedstock for biofuels like Used Cooking Oil Methyl Ester (UCOME). UCO is also used to produce renewable distillates like sustainable aviation fuel and hydrotreated vegetable oil. With governments across the world pledging emission-reduction targets and increased capacity coming online, the demand for UCO is steadily growing.   S&P Global Commodity Insights' experts Elizabeth Thang, Donavan Lim, and Loren Puette discuss how these markets are developing in Asia and the policies that will drive future demand. Subscribe to Platts Dimensions Pro for access to assessments and premium content covering Platts UCO FOB Straits (UCFCC00), UCOME FOB China (UCFCA00), UCOME Singapore (UCFCB00) and many more. Related infographic: As airlines eye SAF for blue skies, used cooking oil in demand  

In this episode of the Commodities Focus podcast, S&P Global Petrochemicals Editor Abdulaziz Ehtaiba talks with Univar Solutions’ Nick Powell, board member at FECC, about events like Russia's war in Ukraine, as well as factors like inflationary pressures in Europe, and how they are impacting the chemicals distribution industry.