Commodity Capsule: Brent crude oil near two-week lows; gold rises, base metal slips | Watch video

Commodity Capsule: Oil prices were little changed on Tuesday, hovering two-week lows.

Uncertainty over voluntary output cuts by OPEC+, continued tension in the Middle East, and weak economic data from the US are keeping crude oil in a range.

Brent crude futures are hovering $78 a barrel mark, while WTI crude futures are trading near $73 a barrel.

Comments by Saudi Arabia's energy minister that OPEC+ production cuts could continue past the first quarter of 2024 if needed lent some support to the market.

Oil prices had declined in the previous trading session as traders doubted that supply cuts by OPEC+ would have a significant impact, and as a stronger US dollar weighed on commodity prices in general.

Gold prices rose on Tuesday, as the US dollar and treasury yields fell after traders pared bets for an interest rate cut by the US Federal Reserve in the 1st quarter of 2024.

Global gold shed over $100 in a single day to settle under $2050/ounce. Comex Gold surged to a record high level of $2,151 an ounce in the previous session.

Gold prices surged in the previous session as investors' confidence was elevated about a rate cut following Fed Chair Jerome Powell's comments on Friday.

The dollar index is hovering 103.50 mark, off a two-week high.

Yields on 10-year Treasury notes slipped to 4.25 per cent.

Fed appears on track to end the year with interest rate hikes as a thing of the past, but with a coming challenge over when and how to signal a turn to rate cuts.

Investors are awaiting the closely-watched U.S. non-farm payrolls data on Friday, which could help further gauge the interest rate outlook.

Base metals prices mostly fell on Tuesday, as a rise in the dollar kept greenback-priced commodities more expensive to holders of other currencies.

Copper on the London Metal Exchange was under $8,450 per metric ton mark, shedding nearly $180 from a four-month high.

The dollar regained some ground and hovered near a two-week high against major peers, in part due to a reversal of its heavy selloff in recent weeks.

China's services activity expanded at a quicker pace in November, creating a mixed picture of the economy and lowering the chance of a big stimulus package that metals bulls have been expecting.

LME lead is trading at its lowest since Nov. 1 on Monday.

SHFE aluminum hit its lowest since Aug. 30 at 18,380 yuan a ton. 

SHFE zinc also dropped to its lowest since September 30 at 20,490 yuan.

Chicago wheat extended gains on Tuesday, rising to their highest since August.

The U.S. government confirmed the largest one-off private wheat sale to China in years.

CBoT wheat edged higher to $6.20 a bushel, hovering highest level since mid-August. Prices have risen over 10 per cent in the last week.

Commodity funds were net buyers of Chicago wheat on Monday.

Ukraine's grain exports have fallen to around 13.4 million metric tons so far in the July 2023-to-June 2024 marketing season from 18.3 million tons over the same period a year ago.

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