LONDON – Prices of raw materials such as oil, wheat, aluminium and nickel have soared to multi-year highs since Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24 and Western sanctions disrupt air and sea shipments of commodities produced and exported by Russia.
See for a Factbox on Russia production and exports of key raw materials.
Following are details of price gains since the close on Feb. 23.
ENERGY
Brent crude hit $119.84 a barrel on Thursday, a gain of nearly 24% since Feb. 23 and the highest since May 2012 and West Texas Intermediate rose to $116.57 a barrel on Thursday, up more than 26% and the highest since September 2008.
Dutch gas prices hit a record 208 euros a tonne on Friday, up from 84.25 euros a tonne at the close on Feb. 23, while British gas touched an all-time high of 490 pence a therm on Friday, up from 200 pence a therm.
Newcastle coal jumped to a record $440 a tonne on Thursday, climbing 85% since the Feb. 23 close.
GRAINS
Wheat prices touched a 14-year peak of $12.09 a bushel on Friday, a gain of nearly 37% since Feb. 23, corn reached $7.82-3/4 a bushel on Friday, the highest since Sept 2012 and a rise of 15% since Feb. 23.
METALS
Aluminium prices hit a record $3,867 a tonne on Friday, a 17% rise since Feb. 23, nickel touched a near 14-year peak of $30,295 a tonne, climbing 24% since Feb. 23.
Copper reached $10,694 a tonne, close to the record high of $10,747.50 seen in May 2021.
Palladium rose to 10-month high at $2,970.5 an ounce for a 20% gain since Feb. 23.
(Reporting by Pratima Desai; editing by Susan Fenton)
