A rebounding dollar Thursday was a speed bump for a commodities rally that earlier sent copper to a record high and lifted some agricultural and energy prices to their highest since the 2008 financial crisis, keeping inflation fears on the front burner. Get the full story »
Inside these posts: Commodities
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Sugar prices hit 30-year high
Sugar prices spiked to their highest level in more than 30 years as a massive tropical cyclone slammed into the northeast coast of Australia, the world’s third-biggest exporter of the sweetener. Raw sugar futures jumped 4% to settle at 35.31 cents a pound on Wednesday after trading as high as 36.11 cents. Get the full story »
ADM 2Q profit jumps 29% on ethanol recovery
U.S. agricultural processor and ethanol producer Archer Daniels Midland Co reported stronger-than-expected quarterly earnings on Tuesday as rising grain prices and robust global demand bolstered results, sending its shares up 6.3 percent in premarket trading.
For the fiscal second quarter ended Dec. 31, net profit was $732 million, or $1.14 per share, compared with $567 million, or 88 cents per share, a year earlier. Get the full story »
Gold posts first monthly loss since July
Gold fell on Monday, notching its first monthly decline in six months, as strong U.S. factory and spending data coupled with fading worries about the euro zone debt crisis put a damper on the metal’s rally. Get the full story »
Commodities rebound in rally; soy leads the way
U.S. corn, soybean and wheat futures surged Wednesday in line with a broad rally across commodity markets as an inflow of fund money and signs of an improving economy resumed the hot streak of 2010. Get the full story »
Rogers index to cut CBOT wheat holdings
The Rogers International Commodity Index will cut its Chicago Board of Trade wheat holdings while boosting its investment in rice in January.
Rogers will reduce the weight of CBOT wheat in its index to 4.75 percent from 6 percent, it said in a statement released on Monday morning. Its rice weighting will rise to 0.75 percent from 0.50 percent. Get the full story »
U.K. OKs CME European clearinghouse
CME Group Inc.’s European clearinghouse won U.K. regulatory approval Thursday, paving the way for the biggest U.S. futures exchange operator to expand globally.
CME plans to launch CME Clearing Europe in early 2011, the Chicago-based company said in a statement. The clearinghouse will start by clearing over-the-counter commodity products, to be followed “soon after” by over-the-counter financial products, it said. Get the full story »
CME more optimistic on CFTC position limits
The top U.S. futures exchanges expressed confidence that a revised plan to clamp down on commodities market speculation will not unduly burden the market.
The comments on Wednesday by the chief executives of IntercontinentalExchange and CME Group were more optimistic than in the past, when exchanges, banks and other market participants sharply criticized the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s plan. Get the full story »
Starbucks CEO: High coffee prices ‘tragic’
Starbucks Corp. Chief Executive Officer Howard Schultz decried the commodity market on Wednesday, saying financial speculators, not product shortages, were to blame for recent price spikes in coffee.
“I think it’s tragic…that coffee prices are at these levels,” Schultz told analysts and investors gathered in New York. “There is no evidence whatsoever that we can see that there’s any supply or demand (issue).” Get the full story »
Commodities might continue declining
If you are tempted to buy commodities after the 7 percent recent downturn, Bespoke Investment Group is suggesting a moment of hesitation.
“History suggests that investors may be better served by waiting for lower prices,” the analysts said in a note to clients. Get the full story »
Nov. 16, 2010 at 4:15 p.m.
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Filed under: Agriculture/Farming, China, International, Stock activity Commodities sink amid concerns about China
Commodity prices are sinking amid concerns about inflation in China and European talks about bailing out Ireland.
Some of the steepest declines came Tuesday in agriculture products and industrial metals. Traders are concerned that demand may diminish because of the developments in other countries.
Precious metals steady; CME raises trading costs
(Reuters/Shannon Stapleton)
Precious metals steadied on Wednesday after futures of gold, and particularly silver, plunged in the previous session’s after-hours trade, although the dollar’s strength limited any immediate recovery.
The price of spot gold, which tracks trades in bullion, was up about half percent. Futures of the precious metal in New York showed a loss of up to 1.4 percent during the session, adjusting to Tuesday’s post-settlement trade. Get the full story »
Gold prices slip as investors take profits
Gold slipped Wednesday as many investors sold holdings for a profit ahead of the Federal Reserve’s decision to buy hundreds of billions more in Treasury bonds to revitalize the economy. Get the full story »
Oil slips on economic worry awaiting Fed move
Oil prices fell on Friday after data showing tepid U.S. economic growth in the third quarter left investors cautious ahead of expected monetary easing from the U.S. Federal Reserve. Get the full story »
Beef prices expected to stay up as supply shrinks
Americans love their beef, but with prices expected to remain high for the next few years and other options plentiful, their loyalities might be challenged.
Average retail prices of beef have climbed from $4.18 per pound in July 2009 to $4.44 per pound last July, a change largely due to a tight supply of cattle. Ranchers and feedlots have reduced supplies in response in large part due to rising prices of corn and soybeans fed to cattle, economists said. Get the full story »
