Dollar at one-month low to euro, boosting commodities
* Copper up for 2 day, strong U.S. housing data helps
* Wheat, soy corn settle up about 1 pct each
* Brent crude slips as U.S. crude stockpiles above estimates
By Barani Krishnan
NEW YORK, Oct 17 (Reuters) - Copper had its biggest gain in
a month on Wednesday and grains markets rose too as the falling
U.S. dollar provided more buying opportunity in commodities for
users of the euro.
Brent crude, the benchmark for oil, closed down as
higher-than-expected U.S. crude stockpiles stirred demand
worries than negated the benefits of the weaker dollar.
The dollar fell to a one-month low against the euro
on growing speculation that Madrid will ask for a bailout next
month. The euro was also helped by Moody's affirmation of
Spain's investment grade rating late on Tuesday.
The Thomson Reuters-Jefferies CRB index, a
bellwether for commodities, settled up half a percent after
gains in 13 of the 19 markets it tracks. Cotton dominated wins
for a second day, rising 4 percent, on worries of a supply
squeeze from poor quality fiber delivered to the market.
COPPER HELPED BY U.S. HOUSING DATA
Copper's key three-month futures contract on the
London Metal Exchange ended up 1.2 percent at $8,220 a tonne,
having hit an intraday high of $8,233.
In New York, U.S. copper futures' most-active contract,
December, settled up 1.3 percent at $3.7480 a lb.
They were the highest percentage gains for copper in a day
of trading since Sept. 14.
Aside from the weak dollar, copper was also buoyed by strong
U.S. housing data. Groundbreaking on new U.S. homes surged in
September to its fastest pace in more than four years, the
Commerce Department said, suggesting that the housing sector's
budding recovery was gaining traction.
"The U.S. economy is showing good signs of stabilization.
There's big expectations about what China could do, but the
market is now turning more to European developments," said
Gianclaudio Torlizzi, partner at metals consultancy T-Commodity.
A two-day European Union summit starts on Thursday,
providing an opportunity for the region to consider closer
fiscal union as a long-term solution to its debt crisis.
"It would certainly be a step forward if Spain did move to
request assistance" at the summit, said Nic Brown, head of
commodities research at Natixis in London.
GRAINS MARKETS UP 1 PCT EACH
On the agricultural front, U.S. wheat, soybeans and corn
futures all rose about 1 percent each as the dollar tumbled and
some supply worries rose.
"Grains are generally firming above Monday's lows with the
rest of the commodity complex," said Arlan Suderman, senior
market analyst for Water Street Advisory.
Wheat reversed three days of losses, partly supported by a
new round of dry weather threatening crops in top wheat
exporting countries the United States and Australia.
Front-month wheat on the Chicago Board of Trade
settled at $8.56-1/4 a bushel, up 8-1/2 cents.
CBOT soybeans settled above $15.09 a bushel. It had
plunged 17 percent from September's record highs of nearly $18
per bushel, touching 3-1/2 month lows earlier in the week.
CBOT corn finished at above $7.45 a bushel.
Prices at 3:34 p.m. EDT (1934 GMT)
LAST/ NET PCT YTD
CLOSE CHG CHG CHG
US crude 91.97 -0.12 -0.1% -6.9%
Brent crude 112.99 -1.01 -0.9% 5.2%
Natural gas 3.470 0.033 1.0% 16.1%
US gold 1753.00 6.70 0.4% 11.9%
Gold 1748.54 1.35 0.1% 11.8%
US Copper 374.80 4.80 1.3% 9.1%
LME Copper 8220.00 95.00 1.2% 8.2%
Dollar 79.023 -0.382 -0.5% -1.4%
US corn 744.75 6.50 0.9% 15.2%
US soybeans 1508.25 15.50 1.0% 25.8%
US wheat 868.75 8.50 1.0% 33.1%
US Coffee 161.50 -1.30 -0.8% -29.2%
US Cocoa 2385.00 -33.00 -1.4% 13.1%
US Sugar 20.11 -0.06 -0.3% -13.4%
US silver 33.232 0.273 0.8% 19.0%
US platinum 1670.50 25.30 1.5% 18.9%
US palladium 653.40 14.45 2.3% -0.4%
0 comments:
Post a Comment