Gold Prices Down In Asia On Profit-Taking, Eye On Dollar Weakness - Gold prices fell in Asia on Monday on profit-taking and as investors keep an eye on the dollar for potential further weakness linked to a more gentle than expected rate hike path by the Fed in 2018 after disappointing jobs data last week. Financial markets in Japan will remain closed for a holiday. Last week, gold prices edged lower in choppy trade on Friday as investors took profits after the metal’s rally to three-and-a-half month highs earlier in the week and as the dollar pushed higher despite a weaker-than-expected U.S. jobs report for December. For the week, the precious metal was still up 0.99%, its fourth consecutive weekly gain. The dollar briefly slid to the day’s lows following the report, before regaining ground. While the report was disappointing given the miss in jobs growth the rise in wage growth was a bright spot. The jobs data was seen as unlikely to alter investor expectations for a rate hike by the Federal Reserve at its March meeting. Fed funds futures have priced in a more than 67% chance the U.S. central bank will hike interest rates in March, according to Investing.com’s Fed Rate Monitor tool.
Copper dipped following strong
gains last month as Chinese investors grew cautious on the metal’s prospects -
Copper on MCX settled down -1.14% at 452.5 following strong gains last
month as Chinese investors grew cautious on the metal’s prospects. Unionised
workers at Glencore Plc’s Lomas Bayas copper mine in Chile rejected a final
contract offer and began government-facilitated mediation to avoid a strike. A
blizzard of data in coming weeks is expected to show China’s economy ended a
strong 2017 on a slightly softer note, but activity has likely remained more
resilient than expected despite a punishing crackdown on industrial pollution
and a cooling property market. from China is holding up with the country's refined
copper production in November jumping nearly 10% from the same time last year
to 786,000 tonnes, the highest rate in at least three years data from the
National Bureau of Statistics showed in December as smelters make the most of
higher copper prices.
Nickel prices dropped on the
back of increased supply from Indonesia and subdued demand from China - Nickel on MCX settled down -0.84% at
794.3 on the back of increased supply from Indonesia and subdued demand from
China. China will continue to “unswervingly” cut existing steel capacity and
strictly ban the launch of any new steelmaking facilities in 2018, its
government said. China has seen more higher-grade production of nickel pig iron
(NPI) as the country imported more nickel ore from Indonesia in 2017. A
blizzard of data in coming weeks is expected to show China’s economy ended a
strong 2017 on a slightly softer note, but activity has likely remained more
resilient than expected despite a punishing crackdown on industrial pollution
and a cooling property market. Jinchuan Group’s nickel smelter caught fire due
to organic solvent on the New Year’s Eve, and about 10,000 mt of output is
estimated to be affected.
Oil prices edge up on lower U.S. rig count, but below
recent highs - Oil prices firmed on Monday on the back of a slight decline in the
number of U.S. rigs drilling for new production, with crude holding just below
near three-year highs reached last week.Traders said the gains were due to a
slight decline in the number of U.S. rigs drilling for new production, which
eased by five in the week to January 5, to 742, according to data from oil
services firm Baker Hughes. Despite this, U.S. production is expected to break
through 10 million barrels per day (bpd) very soon, largely thanks to soaring output
from shale drillers. Only top producers Russia and Saudi Arabia produce more.
"The U.S. oil price is now into a range that is anticipated to attract
increased shale oil production," said Ric Spooner, chief market analyst at
CMC Markets in Sydney. "Traders may decide that discretion is the better
part of valor while markets wait on evidence of what happens to the rig count
and production levels over the next couple of months."
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