Commodity price rout: World Bank sees continued slide for this year

Tokyo

PRICES of all main commodities are expected to continue their five year-long slide throughout this year, and make only a "modest recovery" next year, the World Bank said on Tuesday, in a report offering little comfort to hard-hit producers in Asia and elsewhere.

Oil prices are set to continue their precipitous plunge this year, along with those of natural gas, driven by higher output from OPEC producers and by falling costs of US shale oil; coal prices will also decline further, the World Bank said.