ETF Securities Weekly Flows Analysis – Agriculture ETPs standout during the summer doldrums

• Coffee recorded the largest weekly inflows since May 2015.
• Crude oil ETPs recorded outflows for the sixth consecutive week as prices near US$50/bbl.
• Nickel recorded outflows of US$11m for the week and US$25 for the month on likely profit taking.
• Minor moves in fund flows in comparison to previous weeks due to the summer doldrums.

The summer doldrums have been taking a toll on the volume of flows last week. In precious metals, which are particularly sensitive to comments from central bankers, prices have remained steady as investors waited for any hints from them at the Jackson Hole meeting on Friday. Consequently inflows have been have been minimal, with US$8.8m in gold ETPs. Despite the threat of interest rate hikes there have been net flows of US$338m year-to-date in gold ETPs with outflows in short positioning, suggesting investors aren’t worried about any significant downside risks for gold in the immediate future. In addition, the price of gold gained nearly US$20/oz. this morning as a missile from North Korea overflew Japan early Tuesday.

Crude outflows totalled US$11.3m for the week and since mid-July we have seen outflows of US$225.5m. We continue to observe a fairly established trend of investors selling out positions when the price of crude is above US$50/bbl. Inflows then tend to resume when the oil price falls below US$45/bbl. We believe this is likely to continue as oil is likely to remain range-bound, trading between the lower marginal cost of production for the US tight oil producers and US$55/bbl, the 90th percentile of the broader oil producers cost curve.

Nickel saw outflows of US$12.1m for the week and US$25.9 for the month on likely profit taking. The metal is valued as one of the cheapest when comparing current prices to marginal cost. Prices have also been a laggard relative to its industrial metal peers for the full year. The metal is however playing a catch up over the past month, triggering profit taking from bargain hunters. Industrial metals have been the best performer over the last month in the commodities sphere, having risen 8% versus broader commodities remaining flat. Import data from China is the likely reason for the outperformance. We continue to expect China data to beat expectations and many forward looking data points, such as electricity consumption and port volumes have been rising in recent months.

Coffee saw inflows of US$8.7m, the largest weekly inflows since May 2015. Coffee remains one of the weakest performers year to date in agriculture. Although recent news of an outbreak of the borer beetle, due to the ban of certain pesticides, suggests there could be a burgeoning supply constriction.

Inflows into long wheat ETPs outpaced the peak observed following the extreme drought in the US in 2013. Since the peak in 2014, inflows into long wheat ETPs have reached new records whilst the market remains ample supplied with prices continuously depressed below its 10-years average.

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