A decade-old commodity boom came crashing to an end in 2015, hurting energy and mining companies as China’s industrial rise and appetite for raw materials slowed. The outlook for 2016 is not much better. The Thomson Reuters Core Commodity Index fell by a quarter over the year, to hit its lowest level since 2002 in December, as commodities ranging from iron ore to oil took a battering. And there are few bright spots in sight. “The chances of an optimistic 2016 are bleak,” Mark To, head of research at Hong Kong’s Wing Fung Financial Group, said. “Slowing economic growth and structural reforms in China might contribute to decreased demand for commodities.” Further interest rate hikes by the U.S. Federal Reserve will add to the pain, by strengthening the dollar and making many commodities more expensive […]