Gold prices ease in Asia on profit taking from overnight gains

                   Gold prices eased in Asia on Friday, retracing overnight gains made on concerns about southern European banks.

On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, Goldfutures for August delivery traded at $1,337.40 a troy ounce, down 0.13%, after hitting an overnight session low of $1,325.40 and off a high of $1,346.10.

The parent company of Portugal's largest bank, Banco Espírito Santo, said it missed payments on commercial paper to a few clients, which spooked markets by fueling concerns surrounding the soundness of the banking sectors in Portugal as well as in Spain and Italy.

Gold rose on safe-haven demand while, weak euro zone factory data further bolstered the precious metal's appeal.

Italy's industrial output unexpectedly fell 1.2% in May from April, defying expectations for a 0.2% expansion, while French industrial production plunged 1.7% in May, also confounding expectations for a 0.2% gain.

Meanwhile in the U.S., solid jobless claims numbers supported the greenback, which tends to trade inversely with the yellow metal, the European concerns offset the data due to Fed expectations

The U.S. Department of Labor reported earlier that the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending July 5 declined by 11,000 to 304,000. Analysts had expected jobless claims to hold steady at 315,000 last week.

On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve released the minutes of its June policy meeting in which monetary authorities forecast bond purchases should conclude in October.

Silver for September delivery fell 0.07% at $21.493 a troy ounce. Copperfutures for September delivery rose 0.09% at $3.273 a pound. - investing.com

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NYMEX crude eases in Asia on profit taking after U.S. gains

                           Crude oil prices fell in Asia on Friday on profit taking after mild gains in the U.S. session.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, West Texas Intermediate crude oil for delivery in August traded at $102.76 barrel, down 0.17%,after hitting an overnight session low of $101.55 a barrel and a high of $103.00 a barrel.

Brent oil for August delivery on the ICE Futures Europe exchange gained 0.4% to $108.67 a barrel on Thursday, snapping an eight-day losing streak. It was the largest one-day dollar and percentage gain in three weeks.

Fears that military conflicts in the Middle East will disrupt supplies haven waned in recent sessions, softening oil prices to levels ripe for bottom fishing on Thursday.

Libya recently struck a deal with rebels occupying oil ports under terms that would have insurgents give up control over terminals that have been closed for a year.

The deal should add 500,000 barrels per day of crude back into the global energy market, while expectations for the Iraqi insurgency to remain to the north of the country's oilfields also allowed prices to fall prior to Thursday's buying spree.

Upbeat U.S. jobless claims numbers supported oil as well.

The U.S. Department of Labor reported earlier that the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending July 5 declined by 11,000 to 304,000. Analysts had expected jobless claims to hold steady at 315,000 last week. - investing.com

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Natural gas hit 6-month lows on U.S. inventory report

                       Natural gas futures fell to six-month lows on Thursday after official data revealed U.S. stockpiles rose more than expected last week.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, natural gas futures for delivery in August traded at $4.118 per million British thermal units during U.S. trading, down 1.26%. The commodity hit a session high of $4.189 and a low of $4.117.

The August contract settled down 0.81% on Wednesday to end at $4.170 per million British thermal units.

Natural gas futures were likely to find support at $3.953 per million British thermal units, the low from Jan. 10, and resistance at $4.356, Monday's high.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report that natural gas storage in the U.S. in the week ending July 4 rose by 93 billion cubic feet, above expectations for an increase of 92 billion cubic feet.

The five-year average change for the week is an increase of 72 billion cubic feet.

Total U.S. natural gas storage stood at 2.022 trillion cubic feet. Stocks were 653 billion cubic feet less than last year at this time and 769 billion cubic feet below the five-year average of 2.791 trillion cubic feet for this time of year.

Meanwhile, updated weather-forecasting models called for cooler temperatures stick around parts of the heavily-populated Midwest and Northeast regions over the next five days.

Below-normal temperatures send natural gas prices falling this time of year by fueling expectations for households to throttle back on their air conditioning.

Elsewhere on the NYMEX, light sweet crude oil futures for delivery in August were up 0.61% at $102.92 a barrel, while heating oil for August delivery were up 0.98% at $2.8994 per gallon. investing.com

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EIA Inventory Influencing Crude OIl & Natural Gas Prices

                       Crude oil is trading at 104.00 this morning surging on Wednesday evening after the release of the official EIA inventory. WTI oil prices gained by more than 1.5 percent in yesterday’s trading session and touched a one month high after the EIA report released last night showed large draw in commercial crude stocks, while renewed fighting in Libya that kept output low boosted Brent prices. Explosions and fighting were heard in Tripoli on Wednesday, two days after gunmen stormed parliament amid a surge in violence in the OPEC member country. National output in Libya edged higher to 230,000 barrels per day (bpd), up from 210,000 bpd on Monday but still a fraction of the 1.6 million bpd the country produced before the 2011 war. Two large oilfields were still shut 10 days after the government said protests there were over.

 The EIA released its weekly inventories report showing US crude oil inventories declined by 7.3 million barrels for the week ending on 16^th May 2014. Gasoline stocks rose by nearly 1 million barrels whereas distillate inventories rose by 3.4 million barrels for the same time period. Demand for crude, particularly gasoline usually increases during the month of June-Sep as US moves along its summer driving season which starts officially on the last Monday on May month. While refinery rates were little changed last week, traders feel as we near the summer season, consumption for gasoline would increase while refinery run rates too would rise.

Crude oil reached a one-month high on Wednesday, after the government reported a large draw in commercial crude stocks, while renewed fighting in Libya that kept output low boosted Brent prices. Brent oil rose 9 cents this morning to trade at 110.56. Libya’s major western oilfields remain closed 10 days after the government said protesters blocking pipeline flows had agreed to leave, while total oil output edged higher, a spokesman for National Oil Corp said on Wednesday.

TransCanada Corp is in talks with customers about shipping Canadian crude to the United States by rail as an alternative to its Keystone XL pipeline project that has been mired in political delays, Chief Executive Russ Girdling said on Wednesday.

 China’s April crude imports from Iran more than doubled from a year ago to a record of nearly 800,000 barrels per day (bpd), pushing imports in the first four months of 2014 above levels seen before tougher Western sanctions were applied in 2012.

Natural gas is trading at 4.483 in the green this morning but remaining in a tight range ahead of today’s EIA inventory release and lack of seasonal demand ahead of summer. U.S. natural gas futures ended down almost 2 percent on expectations for a bigger than normal storage build despite forecasts for much stronger than normal cooling demand. Analysts forecast utilities added 102 billion cubic feet of gas into storage last week, well above the year-before and five-year average builds of 90 bcf. The U.S. Energy Information Administration will release its gas storage report and inventories are expected to show a surplus. - Fxempire.com

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NYMEX crude oil prices recover in Asia after HSBC China PMI

                   Crude oil prices recovered in Asia Thursday after stronger manufacturing in key importer China in May.

China's HSBC May flash manufacturing PMI rose to 49.7, well above expectations of matching the April reading of 48.1.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, West Texas Intermediate crude oil for delivery in July traded at $104.06 a barrel, bearly flat, after hitting an overnight session low of $102.58 a barrel and a high of $104.27 a barrel.

Brent crude futures on the ICE Futures Europe exchange rose 86 cents to $110.55 a barrel on Wednesday.

Overnight, crude got a bounce higher after the U.S. Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report that U.S. crude oil inventories fell by 7.2 million barrels in the week ending May 16, far surpassing expectations for a build of 750,000 barrels.

Total U.S. crude oil inventories stood at 391.3 million barrels as of last week.

The report also showed that total motor gasoline inventories increased by 1.0 million barrels, compared to forecasts for a gain of 0.1 million barrels, while distillate stockpiles rose by 3.4 million barrels, compared to expectations for a drop of 0.4 million barrels.

Ongoing tensions between Russia and Ukraine remained in focus, amid concerns over a disruption to supplies from the region.

Ukraine will hold presidential elections on Sunday, and concerns persist that Russia will meddle in the voting and escalate the crisis. U.S. and European officials have already warned that Russia would face additional sanctions if Moscow disrupts the upcoming elections, including sanctions targeting the Russian economy.

Russia produced 10.4 million barrels of oil per day in 2012 and exported 7.4 million, making it the world’s second largest oil exporter after Saudi Arabia.

Meanwhile, renewed concerns over Libya's oil output further supported prices, following some of the worst violence the country has seen since the 2011 war against Muammar Qaddafi.

Libya, an OPEC member, is home to Africa’s largest oil reserves, but production there has faltered in the three years following the topple of former leader Qaddafi due to political instability and attacks on oil assets. - investing.com

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Crude oil futures - weekly outlook: May 19 - 23

                            New York-traded crude oil futures edged higher on Friday, amid indications that the U.S. economy is shaking off the effect of a weather-related slowdown over the winter, while traders continued to monitor events in Ukraine.

Nymex oil ends the week with a gain of 1.56% on U.S. optimism, Ukraine worries

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, U.S. crude oil for delivery in July advanced 0.44%, or 45 cents, on Friday to settle the week at $101.58 a barrel by close of trade.
Futures were likely to find support at $100.82 a barrel, the low from May 15 and resistance at $101.98 a barrel, the high from May 14.

For the week, Nymex oil futures rose 1.56%, or $1.59 a barrel, the first weekly gain in five weeks.

The Commerce Department reported Friday that U.S. housing starts rose 13.2% last month, the largest increase in five months and following a 2.0% increase in March.

The upbeat housing data came one day after a report from the U.S. Department of Labor showed that the number of people who filed for unemployment assistance in the U.S. last week fell to a six-year low of 297,000.

The robust data underlined the view that the U.S. economy was regaining traction after being slowed by unusually cold temperatures during the winter months.

Meanwhile, heightened tensions between Russia and Ukraine remained in focus, amid concerns over a disruption to supplies from the region.

The conflict between pro-Russian separatists and Ukrainian forces continued on Friday, stoking fears that the crisis will further develop and drag the U.S. deeper into the standoff.
Russia produced 10.4 million barrels of oil per day in 2012 and exported 7.4 million, making it the world’s second largest oil exporter after Saudi Arabia.

In the week ahead, investors will be looking to the minutes from the Federal Reserve's latest monetary policy meeting, due for release on Wednesday, for insight on the central bank's view of the economy.

Data from the Commodities Futures Trading Commission released Friday showed that hedge funds and money managers increased their bullish bets in New York-traded oil futures in the week ending May 13.

Net longs totaled 311,195 contracts as of last week, up 3.75% from net longs of 299,543 in the preceding week.

Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange in London, Brent oil for July delivery picked up 0.61%, or 66 cents, on Friday to settle at $109.75 a barrel by close of trade.

The July Brent contract rose 1.69% or $1.86 a barrel on the week, amid growing concerns over a disruption to supplies from Libya.

Meanwhile the spread between the Brent and the WTI crude contracts stood at $8.17 a barrel by close of trade on Friday, compared to $7.90 in the preceding week. - investing.com

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Crude oil futures rise on Ukraine, Libya violence

 

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                       Crude oil futures were higher on Monday, as concerns over a disruption to supplies from Russia and Libya supported prices.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, U.S. crude oil for delivery in July advanced 0.53%, or 54 cents, to trade at $102.12 a barrel during European morning hours.

Nymex oil rose to a session high of $102.27 a barrel earlier, the most since April 24. U.S. oil futures ended Friday’s session up 0.44%, or 45 cents, to settle at $101.58 a barrel.

New York-traded oil futures were likely to find support at $100.97 a barrel, the low from May 16 and resistance at $102.34 a barrel, the high from April 24.

Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange in London, Brent oil for July delivery picked up 0.41%, or 45 cents, to trade at $110.20 a barrel, while the spread between the Brent and U.S. crude contracts stood at $8.08 a barrel.

Heightened tensions between Russia and Ukraine remained in focus, amid concerns over a disruption to supplies from the region.

The conflict between pro-Russian separatists and Ukrainian forces continued on over the weekend, stoking fears that the crisis will further develop and drag the U.S. deeper into the standoff.
U.S. and European officials warned over the weekend that Russia would have to face additional sanctions if Moscow disrupts the upcoming presidential elections in Ukraine on May 25.
Russia produced 10.4 million barrels of oil per day in 2012 and exported 7.4 million, making it the world’s second largest oil exporter after Saudi Arabia.

Meanwhile, renewed concerns over Libya's oil output further supported prices, following some of the worst violence the country has seen since the 2011 war against Muammar Qaddafi.

Libya, an OPEC member, is home to Africa’s largest oil reserves, but production there has faltered in the three years following the topple of former leader Qaddafi due to political instability and attacks on oil assets. - investing.com

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Copper rallies to 11-week high on China stimulus hopes

          Copper prices extended last week’s gains to hit an 11-week high on Monday, as disappointing housing data from China fuelled speculation policymakers will unveil fresh stimulus measures to stabilize the economy.

On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, copper for July delivery advanced 0.79%, or 2.5 cents, to trade at $3.172 a pound during European morning hours.
Copper rose to a session high of $3.184 a pound earlier, the most since March 7. Prices eased up 0.08%, or 0.2 cents, on Friday to settle at $3.147 a pound.

Futures were likely to find support at $3.127 a pound, the low from May 16 and resistance at $3.219 a pound, the high from March 7.

Data released over the weekend showed that house prices in China rose 6.7% in April from a year earlier, slowing from a 7.7% increase in the previous month.

The disappointing data added to hopes that China’s government will introduce fresh stimulus to combat recent signs of a slowdown in the nation’s economy.

The next slice of Chinese economic data to come out will be the HSBC preliminary purchasing managers' index for May, due on Thursday.

The Asian nation is the world’s largest copper consumer, accounting for almost 40% of world consumption last year.

Elsewhere on the Comex, gold for June delivery rose 0.53%, or $6.80, to trade at $1,300.20 a troy ounce, while silver for July delivery jumped 1.24%, or 23.9 cents, to trade at $19.56 an ounce.

Heightened tensions between Russia and Ukraine continued to support demand for safe haven assets.

The conflict between pro-Russian separatists and Ukrainian forces continued on over the weekend, stoking fears that the crisis will further develop and drag the U.S. deeper into the standoff.

U.S. and European officials warned over the weekend that Russia would have to face additional sanctions if Moscow disrupts the upcoming presidential elections in Ukraine on May 25. - investing.com

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Crude oil futures - weekly outlook: April 21 - 25

                U.S. crude oil futures settled near six-week highs on Thursday as concerns over the crisis in Ukraine continued to underpin prices, while upbeat U.S. economic data bolstered the demand outlook.

Nymex oil futures ended the holiday shortened week with gains of 1.06%.On the New York Mercantile Exchange, crude oil futures for delivery in May ended Thursday’s session at $104.58 a barrel, not far from the peaks of $104.97 reached in the previous session. Trading on the NYMEX was closed for Good Friday.

Oil futures moved higher after upbeat U.S. data on manufacturing and employment pointed to underlying strength in the economy.

The Labor Department reported the number of people filing for unemployment benefits edged up to 304,000, below analysts’ forecasts and not far from the six-and-a-half year low of 300,000 touched the previous week.

A separate report showed that manufacturing activity in the Philadelphia region strengthened more than forecast in April.

Crude prices were also supported as heightened tensions between Russia and Ukraine fanned fears over possible supply disruptions from Russia, the world largest energy exporter.

Concerns over the crisis in eastern Ukraine eased somewhat on Thursday after Russia, Ukraine, the U.S. and the European Union said an agreement on steps to "de-escalate" the crisis had been reached.

Heightened geopolitical risk overshadowed a report on Wednesday showing a far larger than expected increase in U.S. crude oil stockpiles.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report that U.S. crude oil inventories rose by 10.01 million barrels in the week ended April 11. It was the largest inventory build since March 2001. Analysts had expected an injection of 2.25 million barrels.

Total U.S. crude oil inventories stood at 394.1 million barrels, the most since June.

Gasoline inventories decreased by 0.2 million barrels, compared to forecasts for a decline of 1.66 million barrels, the EIA said, while distillate stockpiles decreased by 1.27 million barrels.

The May Brent oil contract ended Thursday’s session $109.69 on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange, and ended the week with gains of 0.73%.

The spread between the Brent and the Nymex crude contracts stood at $5.11 a barrel by close of trade, compared to $4.00 in the preceding week. - investing.com

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Gold / Silver / Copper futures - weekly outlook: April 21 - 25

           Gold prices ended the week sharply lower on Thursday, falling below the $1,300 level as indications that the U.S. economic recovery is progressing dampened safe haven demand for the precious metal.

Gold came under pressure after upbeat U.S. data on manufacturing and employment pointed to underlying strength in the economy.On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for June delivery ended Thursday’s session at $1,294.90 an ounce. The precious metal ended the week down 2.34%. The Comex was closed for Good Friday.

The Labor Department reported the number of people filing for unemployment benefits edged up to 304,000, below analysts’ forecasts and not far from the six-and-a-half year low of 300,000 touched the previous week.

A separate report showed that manufacturing activity in the Philadelphia region strengthened more than forecast in April.

Meanwhile, concerns over the crisis in eastern Ukraine eased on Thursday after Russia, Ukraine, the U.S. and the European Union said an agreement on steps to "de-escalate" the crisis had been reached.

Gold, seen as a safe haven investment, usually benefits from economic and geopolitical turmoil.

Concerns over weakening demand from top buyer China also weighed on gold prices.

Prices for the precious metal posted the largest one day decline since December 19 on Tuesday after the World Gold Council said that Chinese gold demand is likely to remain flat this year, as a result of the country's economic slowdown and constrained credit markets.

Elsewhere in metals trading, silver futures for May delivery rose 0.2% to $19.64 a troy ounce on the Comex, trimming the week’s losses to 1.59%.

Copper futures for May delivery edged up to $3.049 a pound at the close on Thursday, to end the holiday shortened week with gains of 0.24%. - investing.com

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