Home working: China has shifted the emphasis to a model based on domestic demand As the Chinese return from their New Year celebrations, commodities traders and industry executives will be wondering what the year of the sheep holds for the sector. Why is Chinese growth on the minds of commodities traders? China has been the most important factor in commodities demand in the past decade. More On this topic IN Commodities explained The commodities “supercycle” that started in the early 2000s was largely driven by the country as investment in infrastructure, property, and factories producing exports for the globe required increasing imports of raw materials. Beijing’s 2009 stimulus further prolonged the demand, with loose credit encouraging the use of metal as collateral for loans. China grew from consuming about 12 per cent of the world’s metals in 2000 to near 50 per cent today. In commodities like iron ore, […]