Oct 17, 2008
Gold falls under $41.76
Gold for December delivery fell US$34.90 to settle at US$804.50 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange after earlier falling to US$786.70. -- PHOTO: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
NEW YORK - GOLD prices briefly plunged below US$800 an ounce (S$41.76 per gram) on Thursday as investors continued to sell off commodities on concerns that the economic slowdown will dramatically reduce demand for energy and raw materials.
Gold for December delivery fell US$34.90 to settle at US$804.50 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange after earlier falling to US$786.70.
Other precious metals also fell. December silver fell US$0.55 to settle at US$9.635 an ounce on the Nymex, while December copper lost US$0.13 to settle at US$2.0855 a pound (1 pound = 0.45kg).
Mr Jon Nadler, analyst with Kitco Bullion Dealers Montreal, blamed the pullback on investor expectations of a substantial drop in worldwide demand for commodities.
'If the global economy will have to go through what apparently lies ahead of it, hopes for demand for 'stuff' will have to be sharply revised - and not upward,' Mr Nadler said in a note.
In energy trading, crude oil fell below US$70 after the government reported sharp increases in US crude and gasoline supplies, a sign investors took as more evidence that the slumping economy is curbing demand.
Light, sweet crude for November delivery dropped US$4.69, or 6.2 per cent, to settle at US$69.85 a barrel on the Nymex, the lowest settlement prices since Aug 23, 2007. Earlier prices dipped to US$68.57, a level not seen since Jun 27, 2007.
Crude has now fallen 52.5 per cent since surging to a record US$147.27 on Jul 11.
In other Nymex trading, heating oil fell US$0.11 to settle at US$2.1108 a gallon, while gasoline futures lost US$0.16 to settle at US$1.622 a gallon.
Meanwhile, agriculture futures traded mixed on the Chicago Board of Trade.
Wheat for December delivery fell 0.5 cent to settle at US$5.5525 a bushel, while December corn lost 3.5 cents to settle at US$3.845 a bushel. November soybeans rose 9 cents to settle at US$8.670 a bushel. -- AP
http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking+News/Money/Story/STIStory_291505.html
Gold falls under $41.76
Gold for December delivery fell US$34.90 to settle at US$804.50 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange after earlier falling to US$786.70. -- PHOTO: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
NEW YORK - GOLD prices briefly plunged below US$800 an ounce (S$41.76 per gram) on Thursday as investors continued to sell off commodities on concerns that the economic slowdown will dramatically reduce demand for energy and raw materials.
Gold for December delivery fell US$34.90 to settle at US$804.50 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange after earlier falling to US$786.70.
Other precious metals also fell. December silver fell US$0.55 to settle at US$9.635 an ounce on the Nymex, while December copper lost US$0.13 to settle at US$2.0855 a pound (1 pound = 0.45kg).
Mr Jon Nadler, analyst with Kitco Bullion Dealers Montreal, blamed the pullback on investor expectations of a substantial drop in worldwide demand for commodities.
'If the global economy will have to go through what apparently lies ahead of it, hopes for demand for 'stuff' will have to be sharply revised - and not upward,' Mr Nadler said in a note.
In energy trading, crude oil fell below US$70 after the government reported sharp increases in US crude and gasoline supplies, a sign investors took as more evidence that the slumping economy is curbing demand.
Light, sweet crude for November delivery dropped US$4.69, or 6.2 per cent, to settle at US$69.85 a barrel on the Nymex, the lowest settlement prices since Aug 23, 2007. Earlier prices dipped to US$68.57, a level not seen since Jun 27, 2007.
Crude has now fallen 52.5 per cent since surging to a record US$147.27 on Jul 11.
In other Nymex trading, heating oil fell US$0.11 to settle at US$2.1108 a gallon, while gasoline futures lost US$0.16 to settle at US$1.622 a gallon.
Meanwhile, agriculture futures traded mixed on the Chicago Board of Trade.
Wheat for December delivery fell 0.5 cent to settle at US$5.5525 a bushel, while December corn lost 3.5 cents to settle at US$3.845 a bushel. November soybeans rose 9 cents to settle at US$8.670 a bushel. -- AP
http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking+News/Money/Story/STIStory_291505.html
