Metals – LME on-warrant zinc stockpiles rise
LME on-warrant stocks for zinc rose by 67,500 tonnes (the largest daily addition since March 2018) to 188,175 tonnes as of yesterday. Most inflows were reported from warehouses in Singapore. Total readily available stocks for zinc have seen net inflows of 77,150 tonnes over the last two days alone, while net inflows for the month total 122,600 tonnes. Meanwhile, exchange inventories increased by 68,100 tonnes to 210,850 tonnes as of yesterday, the highest since September 2021.
Agriculture – Ukrainian grain exports remain under pressure
Ukraine’s Agriculture Ministry reported that total grain exports for the season fell 28% YoY to 12mt as of 22 November. These shipments include 5.5mt (-15% YoY) of wheat and 5.6mt (-37% YoY) of corn. While Ukraine struggles to export to the world market, domestic production has held up well, which suggests that we are seeing a large build of grain inventories in the domestic market. High levels of stocks could weigh on plantings and, as a result, output for next season.