Commodity Capsule: Brent crude oil extends last week's losses; gold rises; copper steady | Watch video

Commodity Capsule: Oil prices extended last week's losses on Monday on concern about slow demand in China.

Lingering geopolitical risk surrounding the Middle East and Russia caps the decline.

Brent futures fell to $81.50/barrel. US WTI futures dropped to $77.50

Both benchmarks fell last week, with Brent down 1.8 per cent and WTI 2.5 per cent lower on bearish Chinese data which pointed at softer demand.

US job growth accelerated in February, but a rise in the unemployment rate and moderation in wage gains kept June's interest rate cut from the Federal Reserve on the table.

China last week set an economic growth target for 2024 of around 5 per cent, which many analysts called ambitious without much more stimulus.

China's imports of crude oil rose in the first two months of the year vs the same period in 2023, but they were weaker than the preceding months, continuing a trend of softening purchases.

On the supply side, OPEC+ agreed early this month to extend voluntary oil output cuts of 2.2 million barrels per day into the second quarter.

Gold prices rose on Monday, and hovered near a record peak hit in the previous session.

Remarks from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and US economic data last week cemented hopes for a rate cut in June.

U.S. gold futures edged higher to the $2,190 mark, after having touched an all-time high of $2203 in the previous session.

The US unemployment rate rose to 3.9 per cent in February after holding at 3.7 per cent for three straight months.

Powell sounded more confident about cutting interest rates in coming months in his Congressional testimony last week.

Consumer price inflation data for February on Tuesday will be the next major US economic release to offer fresh clues on likely Fed policy.

Traders are pricing in 25 bps U.S. rate cuts, with a 75 per cent chance for the first in June-- LSEG's interest rate probability app.

COMEX gold speculators raised their net long positions by 63,018 contracts to 131,060 in the week ended March 5.

Copper prices in London were steady on Monday as traders assessed lower inventories and tight global supply, while weaker US dollar lent support.

Copper on the London Metal Exchange held its ground near $8,600/metric ton, having hit a five-week high on Friday.

Supporting copper prices were mine-side disruptions that started last December, dampening Chinese smelters' profit margins and threatening to curb output.

LME copper stocks declined on Friday to the lowest levels since last August.

Copper Production by Codelco in Chile in January sank nearly 16 per cent year-on-year (YoY), while output from other producers in the nation climbed.

The dollar index hovered close to a two-month low, below the 102.50 mark.

Copper inventories in warehouses monitored by Shanghai Futures Exchange rose 11.5 per cent, the exchange said on Friday.

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