Author name: Commodities Market Writer

Shares of most Chinese solar and major battery makers rose on Monday after Beijing unveiled a consumption tax on solar cells and lithium batteries, raising hopes it will hasten industry consolidation, particularly in the oversupplied solar sector.

Emerging-market stocks and currencies were mixed as investors weighed rising tensions between the US and Iran, as well as a technology-led selloff that rattled global markets last week.

Palm oil rose to the highest in nearly a month, tracking renewed strength in crude and other vegetable oil prices as the US and Iran exchanged escalating military strikes.

India’s central bank stepped into the foreign exchange markets to support the rupee after the currency weakened toward a record low as a renewed surge in crude prices weighed on sentiment.

A closely-watched gauge of China’s copper market has risen to the highest in more than a year, as a tax shake-up in the metal’s biggest market spurs a shortage of scrap and boosts demand for imports.

Leveraged funds have taken their short positions on the New Zealand dollar to a record high, betting that a recent rebound in global oil prices may exacerbate domestic economic pressures.

Oil prices rose while U.S stock-index futures were little changed on Sunday, amid an escalation of fighting in the Middle East and as investors await key tech earnings this week.