Energy Prices

Energy prices decreased 3.6% month on month in December, following November’s 1.7% rise.

Energy prices fell for the seventh time in nine months in December, with crude oil, natural gas and thermal coal all posting declines. Regarding crude oil—by far the world’s most-traded energy commodity—prices fell as OPEC+ hiked output quotas for the ninth month running; they are now up nearly 3% since April. This decline in crude oil, in turn, dampened gasoline and diesel prices, which were also hit by rising refinery output. Meanwhile, U.S. natural gas prices fell thanks to mild weather and record production of the fuel, and prices also dipped in Europe thanks to record American LNG shipments. Finally, thermal coal prices slipped amid data showing that mild weather and rising renewables output hit its use for electricity generation in China. That said, coking coal and uranium prices rose.