Energy Prices

Energy prices jumped 3.8% in April compared to the prior month, after falling 5.7% in March. This marked the strongest expansion since May 2022.

April was a mixed bag for energy commodities. The spot price of crude, the world’s most important energy commodity, rose in early April after OPEC+ said it would cut crude output from May onward. This also pushed up the spot price of gasoline, which is mostly comprised of crude. The spot price of thermal coal also rose early in the month, while the spot price of uranium surged late in the month. However, the spot prices of crude, gasoline and thermal coal all eased later in April. Investors remained cagey ahead of the U.S. Fed’s meeting on 3 May and in the wake of data showing that Russian oil exports remained resilient and China’s economic recovery lost some steam in April. The spot prices of the other energy commodities in our report—namely European and U.S. natural gas, coking coal and gasoil—all fell on average in April: Mild weather and record U.S. production weighed on gas prices; a weak Chinese steel sector impacted coking coal prices; and strong Middle Eastern exports and the end of strikes at French refineries undermined gasoil prices.