Analysis Topic: Commodity Markets - Metals, Softs & Oils
The analysis published under this topic are as follows.
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Will China Unleash More Stimulus and Boost Gold Prices? / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2012
By: Eric_McWhinnie
On Tuesday, China reported GDP growth of 8.9 percent in the last quarter of 2011, which is the slowest growth increase in more than two years. Although analysts were only expecting growth of 8.7 percent, the slowdown gave investors hope that the world’s second largest economy will inject more stimulus into its economy to fuel growth. As a result, gold jumped $24 to climb above $1,650 per ounce, while silver surged 60 cents to settle above $30 per ounce. However, investors should reign in expectations of more stimulus being unleashed in China during the early part of 2012.
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Wednesday, January 18, 2012
The Intrinsic Value of the U.S. Dollar and Gold / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2012
By: Michael_Pento
If you ask most investors what is the main driver for the price of gold they are likely you tell you that it's the direction of the U.S. dollar. Therefore, the only due diligence most investors perform is a perfunctory glance at the Dollar Index (DXY). While it is true that the purchasing power of the dollar is a key metric to judge the direction of gold prices, the DXY will only tell you what the dollar is doing against a basket of 6 other flawed fiat currencies.
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Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Natural Gas Glut 2012 / Commodities / Natural Gas
By: Roger_Conrad
Not since the late 1990s have natural gas prices been this low in the dead of winter. That includes the aftermath of the 2008 crash, when oil bottomed briefly under USD30 a barrel. US inventories of the clean fuel hit a record of 3.852 trillion cubic feet in November and remain at a record for December, 11.4 percent above year-earlier levels.Heating demand that’s nearly 20 percent below normal so far this season is at least partly to blame. Roughly half of Americans heat their homes with natural gas. This shortfall has been offset somewhat by a jump in gas’ share of electricity generation to nearly 30 percent from an average of only about 20 percent in recent years.
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Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Gold Seeing Resistance at $1667, New Lehman-style Crisis Could Engulf Banks / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2012
By: Ben_Traynor
THE SPOT MARKET price to buy gold climbed to $1658 an ounce during Wednesday morning's London trade – 0.8% up on Asian session lows – following reports that the International Monetary Fund is seeking to boost its lending capacity by $1 trillion.
European stock markets also recovered from an early dip, with industrial commodities also edging higher.
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Wednesday, January 18, 2012
How to Profit from the "Shale Oil Bubble" / Commodities / Crude Oil
By: Money_Morning
Jason Simpkins writes:
It's true: French, Japanese, and Chinese energy companies cannot seem to get their hands on a big enough slice of U.S. shale oil deposits these days.
However, that doesn't mean this investment frenzy is evidence of a "shale oil bubble."
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Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Fractal Analysis Suggests Higher Silver Prices Are Coming / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2012
By: Hubert_Moolman
The price of a good often behaves in a similar manner at or around the same kind of milestone. An example of such a milestone could be a significant top. Price often forms a similar type of pattern at different significant tops - different in terms of time of occurrence. This is a reflection of how market participants themselves often behave in a similar manner when faced with the same kind of situation. This of course makes perfect sense, since it is normal, for example, to rest after you have been extremely busy for a while. For most people, this is true whether it was yesterday, or in 20 years.
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Has Gold's D-Wave Bottomed, Stocks Heading Lower? / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2012
By: Toby_Connor
It seems like most analysts, and gold bugs are now assuming that the reversal on December 29 marked the bottom of golds D-Wave decline. It's certainly possible that we saw a bottom two weeks ago but it's still too early to make that assumption. Gold, and most assets are about to be severely tested. How gold handles that test will be a big clue as to whether or not the correction is over.
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Gasoline and Crude on the Rise / Commodities / Crude Oil
By: Jim_Farrish
$5 gasoline this summer -- fact or fiction? As we start a new year it is apparent that $3 gasoline is leaving, at least for now. The rise at the pump is to $3.39 per gallon according to AAA last week. Considering the average cost was down to $3.20 just three weeks ago, this is an increase of nearly 6%. Gasoline is up 30% versus a year ago according to the AAA data. What does all this mean and what is driving the price higher? Short term, there has been concern over the bantering with Iran and the threat to close the Strait of Hormuz. Some 17 million barrels per day passed through in 2011. Geopolitical risks are always present in the current era of the Mideast. Not to be outdone, Nigeria has seen strikes and protests over the weekend, adding to the pressure on oil prices. Thus, gasoline is on the rise... again. The following are some issues facing gas and potential reasons it may rise to $5 per gallon this summer.
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Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Crude Oil Prices 2012, Another Roller Coaster Ride? / Commodities / Crude Oil
By: Asha_Bangalore
Oil is trading around $112 a barrel this morning. Putting things in perspective, the price of oil today is higher than the level seen in the 2005-2006 period when the world economy was growing at a faster pace and the economic challenges of 2012 were not on the horizon.
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Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Copper Rallies in Response to China Data / Commodities / Commodities Trading
By: Mike_Paulenoff
Today's strength in the risk-on markets in general and in the industrial commodity markets in particular likely reflects a collective sigh of relief that China Q4 growth came in a touch better than expected -- at 8.9% versus 8.7%.
This has triggered some short-covering and perhaps optimistic new buying interest ahead of renewed optimism about forthcoming China economic stimulus, as noted in the charts on copper, silver, and oil.
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Wednesday, January 18, 2012
How will China's Pan Asian Gold Exchange Revolutionize Gold and Silver Trading? / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2012
By: Sam_Chee_Kong
PAGE which stands for Pan Asian Gold Exchange was set up in 2011 and has already begun operations with local Chinese buying and selling of gold through the internet. PAGE is located in Kunming, the capital city of Yunnan Province located in South Western China and is also the major gateway to South East Asia.
This gold exchange will enable ordinary Chinese buy/sell gold using a Renminbi account with a bank or broker. Currently there are two banks that are authorized to process the transactions or settlements and they are the Agriculture Bank of China and The Fudian Bank of Yunnan. The 10 ounce mini contracts will be known as T+D and the price is RMB 30,000 for 1 lot and it is fully backed by the Chinese government.
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Tuesday, January 17, 2012
What the Next Decade Holds for Commodities / Commodities / Commodities Trading
By: Frank_Holmes
What a decade! A rapidly urbanizing global population driven by tremendous growth in emerging markets has sent commodities on quite a run over the past 10 years. If you annualized the returns since 2002, you find that all 14 commodities are in positive territory.
A precious metal was the best performer but it's probably not the one you were thinking of. With an impressive 20 percent annualized return, silver is king of the commodity space over the past decade with gold (19 percent annualized) and copper (18 percent annualized) following closely behind.
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Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Gold Ignores Indian Tax Hike, Rises Because of China / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2012
By: Adrian_Ash
The WHOLESALE MARKET gold price reached new 5-week highs as Asian trade ended and London opened on Tuesday, while global stock markets and commodity prices also rose after stronger-than-expected growth data from China.
The world's second-largest economy, China reported annual growth of 8.9% for the end of 2011 – the weakest level since mid-2009 but stronger than analysts forecast and almost 5 times the pace of US growth at last count.
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
No More Safe Havens, Avoid Counterparty Risks / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2012
By: William_Bancroft
In this brief article about Safe Havens for investors we look at equities, bonds, and the current situation within the financial system, before asking whether gold bullion is being overlooked. We look at the degree of participation by institutional investors in the gold market and notice that they seldom invest in gold.
John Plender writes in yesterday’s FT that the pool of “super safe assets” is shrinking, whilst legal and advisory firms around the world scramble to prepare their clients for the implications of new currencies (or should I say old currencies returning in new guises).
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Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Global Gold Coin and Bar Demand Surges, Thomson Reuters GFMS Annual Gold Survey / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2012
By: GoldCore
Gold’s London AM fix this morning was USD 1,662.00, GBP 1,080.34, and EUR 1,299.76 per ounce.
Yesterday's AM fix was USD 1,642.00, GBP 1,070.27, and EUR 1,281.71 per ounce.
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Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Gold and Silver Outlook in 2012 / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2012
By: Jordan_Roy_Byrne
Lately we've been writing about the precious metals stocks. In particular we believe the equities have made a multi year bottom and look ready for a solid 2012 and 2013. Part of the reason is the action in the metals (Gold & Silver) suggests an important bottom is in place and a rebound is underway. Based on our work, we anticipate a slow but gradual rebound in both metals.
Monday, January 16, 2012
Upward Pressure to Remain on Brent Crude Oil in 2012 / Commodities / Crude Oil
By: Investment_U
David Fessler writes: Oil prices have traded off a few dollars from their recent highs. The factors that will keep Brent above $100 a barrel for 2012 are the same ones that kept it above $100 all of last year.
Take a look at the graph below, courtesy of the Energy Information Administration.
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Monday, January 16, 2012
Gold Bull Bear Standoff Approaching Probable Bullish Resolution / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2012
By: Clive_Maund
The current standoff in gold is approaching resolution and evidence is starting to pile up in favor of an upside breakout. We have been cautious on the PM sector for months starting with the September top which we shorted, resulting in massive profits in a matter of days, especially in silver, but there is always the danger of taking caution too far and getting caught on the wrong side of the trade.
Monday, January 16, 2012
Silver Bearish or Bullish Contrary Unfolding Technical Pictures / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2012
By: Clive_Maund
The diminution in silver's downside momentum and the massive contradiction between our earlier bearish interpretation of the charts, and the strongly bullish COTs and sentiment indicators forces us today to reconsider the charts and ponder other possibilities, for we cannot afford to be on the wrong side of the trade in this commodity. Fortunately we are still ahead of the curve as silver has yet to "tip its hand", but it doesn't look like it will be long now before it does.
Monday, January 16, 2012
How to Risk Little and Potentially Win A LOT in the Resource Stocks Market / Commodities / Resources Investing
By: DailyWealth
Matt Badiali writes: After watching the sector fall for most of 2011, resource investors finally have a great opportunity to make money in 2012...
But before I get to the big opportunity, which could lead to 50%-100% gains, here's the backstory...