On April 23, the World Bank released a report that the impact of the new crown pandemic on the global economy has caused most commodity prices to fall. It is expected that commodity prices, especially energy and metal prices, will fall sharply this year.

The latest issue of the World Bank's "Commodity Market Outlook" report predicts that the average price of energy, including crude oil, natural gas and coal, will fall by about 40% in 2020 from 2019, but will rebound in 2021. Among them, the average price of crude oil in 2020 is expected to be US$35 per barrel, down about 43% from 2019.

The report shows that the prices of most industrial metals have fallen this year, of which copper and zinc have fallen the most. They have fallen by about 15% since January, but the prices of precious metals such as gold have increased. Due to the economic shutdown and slowing demand, the average metal price is expected to drop by about 13% this year.

The correlation between agricultural product prices and economic growth is relatively low, with only a slight decline in the first quarter of this year. Food prices are expected to remain stable throughout the year. The report reminds that supply chain disruptions and government measures to restrict exports or hoard goods may put food security at risk in some places.