ties higher in the second half of the year.
In 2013, the energy component of the
S&P Goldman Sachs Commodity Index
ended the year close to its starting point.
The S&P GSCI grains, industrial met-
als, and precious metals indexes, on the
other hand, ended 2013 down 17%, 20%
and 27% from their respective starting
points.
In recent years, crude oil futures price
changes often moved in tandem—were
positively correlated—with the price
changes of other commodities. These
correlations dropped in the latter half of
2013, indicating that commodity sector
prices have been responding to factors
in their respective markets rather than
broad shifts in expectations of global eco-
nomic growth, which tend to increase or
decrease the prices of all commodities.
Energy Commodities
Prices for major crude oil bench-
marks and petroleum products ended
the year mostly flat or down. WTI and
Brent together make up nearly 70% of
the weighting in the S&P GSCI Energy
Index. The index was heavily influenced
by the rise in crude prices during the ini-
tial supply disruptions in Libya in July
and the uncertainty of military conflict in
Syria in the last half of August. However,
as fall maintenance season began in the
United States, pushing WTI inventories
near record highs, and as geopolitical
issues subsided, crude prices declined.
Petroleum products and natural gas
account for the remaining 30% of the
S&P GSCI Energy Index. Heating oil
prices rose this year because of strong
global demand for distillate fuel and
inventories near five-year lows. Gasoline
prices, however, declined as abundant
supplies were produced as a result of
the high refinery runs needed to satisfy
demand for heating oil and diesel fuel.
U.S. natural gas prices ended higher
in 2013 as cold weather across much of
the country drove prices well above $4
per million British thermal units in both
the physical and financial markets. As a
result, natural gas prices were 50 cents to
$1/MMBtu above their level at the start
of the year.
www.fueloilnews.com | FUEL OIL NEWS | JUNE 2014 15
U.S. natural gas prices ended
higher in 2013 as cold weather
across much of the country drove
prices well above $4 per million
British thermal units in both the
physical and financial markets.
