The Bloomberg Commodity Index's Corn SubIndex has started the year strongly, marking its best beginning since 2022, amid factors such as tariffs, market uncertainty, and insurance pricing. In the energy sector, U.S. natural gas net long positions saw an increase of 5 billion cubic feet (bcf) for the week ending January 24, while long positions fell by 2 bcf (1%), and short positions decreased by 8 bcf (2%). The Nymex price for natural gas dropped by $0.12 (3%), from $4.04 to $3.92. In crude oil markets, ICE Brent net long positions rose by 45 million barrels (mmb) or 17%, while WTI net long positions fell by 59 mmb (24%) during the same week. Brent futures prices decreased by $2.24 (3%), settling at $78.77, while WTI prices fell by $3.43 (6%) to $75.15. Overall, Brent and WTI net long positions decreased by 14 mmb, although they remain 1% higher than the 2022-24 average, but 33% lower than the 2017-21 average. Open interest in these markets decreased by 238 mmb.