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Oil futures settled above $49 a barrel on Wednesday, at their highest level in more than two weeks, with turmoil in Yemen raising concerns over crude supplies in the Middle East.
crude for delivery in May CLK5, +3.54% settled at $49.21 a barrel, up $1.70, or 3.6%. Prices had been trading around $48.23 shortly before the supply data, pared gains after it, then spiked higher just over an hour before the scheduled close of trading on Nymex. The settlement was the highest for a front-month contract since March 9.
May Brent crude LCOK5, +2.64% on London’s ICE Futures exchange rallied $1.37, or 2.5%, to $56.48 a barrel.
Gold futures rebounded from early weakness and posted a sixth straight winning session on Wednesday after an unexpected drop in February durable-goods orders.
Gold for April delivery GCJ5, +0.16% rose $5.60, or 0.5%, to close at $1,197 an ounce on Comex after tapping an intraday high of $1,199.30. The close was the highest since March 4.
INTERNATIONAL COMMODITY NEWS :
Gold prices were marginally higher in early Asia on Tuesday ahead of the initial HSBC (LONDON:HSBA) manufacturing gauge for March that will also put copper into focus. In China, the March flash reading of the HSBC PMI will be released at 09:45 Beijing time (0145 GMT) and is expected at 50.6, a slight downtick from 50.7 in February. On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange gold futures for April delivery fell 0.10% to $1,189.100 a troy ounce.Overnight, gold futures edged up on Monday reaching two-week highs, amid modest gains from the euro against the U.S. Dollar. Gold prices have rallied since the middle of last week following relatively dovish comments from Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen halted the dollar’s steep appreciation against the euro. Despite offering indications that the Fed will likely increase interest rates at some point this year, Yellen said the Fed will take a “data driven” approach on the timing of its first interest rate hike since 2009.
TRADING STRATEGY :
BUY GOLD ABOVE 1192 TARGET 1197 1203 SL 1186
SELL GOLD BELOW 1185 TARGET 1180 1174 SL 1191
April platinum PLJ5, -0.24% settled up $3.30, or 0.3%, at $1,144.50 an ounce, while June palladium PAM5, +0.23% fell $8.40, or 1.1%, to $770.70 an ounce.
May copper HGK5, +0.02% tacked on 2.85 cents, or 1%, to $2.7895 a pound.
April gasoline RBJ5, -0.37% rose more than a half cent to $1.804 a gallon and April heating oil HOJ5, -0.49% settled at $1.731 gallon, down less than half a cent for the session.
April natural gas NGJ15, +0.18% fell 5.3 cents, or 1.9%, to end at $2.733 per million British thermal units.
Oil futures settled on Monday at their highest level in almost two weeks on the back of a weaker U.S. dollar, despite comments from Saudi Arabia that indicated it would maintain crude-production levels.
May crude CLK5, -1.26% tacked on 88 cents, or 1.9%, to settle at $47.45 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. That was the highest settlement for a most-active contract since March 11.
May Brent crude LCOK5, -0.66% added 60 cents, or 1.1%, to end at $55.92 a barrel on London’s ICE Futures exchange.
Gold futures finished higher on Monday for a fourth session in a row with concerns surrounding Greece’s debt problems and a sharp drop in the U.S. dollar providing support for the metal.
Gold for April delivery on Comex GCJ5, -0.19% rose $3.10, or 0.3%, to settle at $1,187.70 an ounce on Comex. May silver SIK5, -0.07% added less than a penny to $16.891 an ounce. Gold ended Friday with a 2.8% gain for the week, while silver jumped around 9%.
INTERNATIONAL COMMODITY NEWS :
Gold prices eased in Asia on Monday in light trade as sentiment on the timing of a widely expected Federal Reserve rate hike guides investors. On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for April delivery fell 0.24% to 1,181.70 a troy ounce. Gold rallied to a two-week high on Friday, as the U.S. dollar sold off after the Federal Reserve projected a slower pace of rate hikes following its policy meeting earlier in the week. Dollar weakness usually benefits gold, as it boosts the metal’s appeal as an alternative asset and makes dollar- priced commodities cheaper for holders of other currencies. The dollar’s losses came after the Federal Reserve downgraded its forecasts for growth and inflation and lowered its interest rate projections, prompting investors to push back expectations on the timing and pace of future rate increases.
TRADING STRATEGY :
BUY GOLD ABOVE 1188 TARGET 1193 1199 SL 1182
SELL GOLD BELOW 1178 TARGET 1173 1167 SL 1184
April platinum PLJ5, +1.60% rose $21.60, or 1.9%, to end at $1,141.20 an ounce, tacking on about 2.3% for the week.
June palladium PAM5, +1.47% rose $13.30, or 1.7%, to $779.10 an ounce, down around 1.2% for the week.
May silver SIK5, +3.79% jumped 76.9 cents, or 4.8%, to end at $16.883 an ounce, with prices around 9% higher for the week.
May copper HGK5, +3.42% added 10.1 cents, or 3.8%, to $2.761 a pound—up roughly 3.5% for the week.
Nymex April gasoline RBJ5, +0.82% rose 2.4 cents, or 1.3%, to $1.798 a gallon, up 2% for the week. April heating oil HOJ5, +0.36% ended at $1.734 a gallon, up 1.2 cents, or 0.7%, with prices up 1.2% for the week.
April natural gas NGJ15, -1.03% fell 2.7 cents, or 1%, to $2.786 per million British thermal units after earlier tapping a high of $2.919 on the back of gains in oil. Prices were up roughly 2.2% for the week.
Crude-oil futures rallied Friday as a drop in the U.S. dollar and another decline in U.S. rig counts helped prices score their first weekly gain in five weeks.
April CLJ5, +4.34% which expired at the close Friday, settled at $45.72 a barrel, up $1.76, or 4%. Crude for May CLK5, +2.02% delivery, which became the front month, tacked on $1.04, or 2.3%, to $46.57 a barrel.
Gold futures climbed for a third straight session on Friday to tally a weekly gain of nearly 3% as a sharp drop in the U.S. dollar buoyed investment demand.
Gold for April delivery GCJ5, +1.09% on Comex rose $15.60, or 1.3%, to settle at $1,184.60 an ounce. Prices scored weekly gain of 2.8%, based on the most-active contracts. They settled at their highest level since March 5.
INTERNATIONAL COMMODITY NEWS :
Brent prices rebounded towards $55 a barrel on Friday as the dollar weakened, but gains were limited by supply concerns after Kuwait said OPEC had no choice but to maintain output levels. High inventory in the United States, the world’s largest oil consumer, also dragged on prices. Brent crude for May delivery had risen 16 cents to $54.59 a barrel by 0220 GMT. The contract is flat for the week, after falling in the two previous weeks.
TRADING STRATEGY :
BUY GOLD ABOVE 1174 TARGET 1179 1185 SL 1168
SELL GOLD BELOW 1166 TARGET 1161 1155 SL 1172
May silver SIK5, -0.02% rallied 57.3 cents, or 3.7%, to end at $16.114 an ounce, which was also a two-week high.
April platinum PLJ5, +0.23% rose $27, or 2.5%, to end at $1,119.60 an ounce.
June palladium PAM5, +0.37% rose $1.15, or 0.2%, to $765.80 an ounce.
May copper HGK5, -0.23% jumped nearly 9 cents, or 3.5%, to $2.66 a pound after posting losses over the past two sessions.
April gasoline RBJ5, -0.08% fell 2.5 cents, or 1.4%, to $1.774 a gallon.
April heating oil HOJ5, +0.00% ended at $1.722 a gallon, down 5 cents, or 2.8%.
April natural gas NGJ15, +0.82% fell 10.7 cents, or 3.7%, to end at $2.813 per million British thermal units.
Oil futures saw their third lowest settlement of the year on Thursday as traders fretted over record U.S. supplies and failed to see any real indications that crude output is headed for a significant decline.
Crude for delivery in April CLJ5, -0.14% settled at $43.96 a barrel, down 70 cents, or 1.6%, on the New York Mercantile Exchange, giving up much of the 2.8% gain it scored a day earlier.
