Economy, investment and finance

Commodity prices dropped by nearly 24 per cent in 2023, attaining a similar level to 2021 after the 2022 peak. This drop was led by fuel prices which dropped by 32.1 per cent, while prices for the all food group only decreased by 8.5 per cent. Excluding fuels, overall prices have been broadly flat in the 2021–2023 period. 

Prices of minerals, ores and metals increased by 1.1 per cent in 2023, getting closer to the value of their 2021 peak.

Looking at intra-annual trends, fuel prices continued to drop year-on-year between January 2023 and April 2024, before increasing in May–July only to fall again August–October.

Prices for the all food group have seen slow and steady year-on-year falls since January 2023, with only October 2024 seeing a gain. By contrast, year-on-year growth in prices of the minerals, ores and metals group as well as in agricultural raw materials turned from negative into positive in mid-2023 and both have largely remained positive since.