Base Metals Mostly Lower
Jun 9th, 2009 | By Doug Casey | Category: Gold MarketThe base metals were mostly lower on Monday. Copper declined through the pre-dawn hours, perked up in New York but failed to escape the red, finishing at $2.2349/lb., down a penny and a half.
Nickel followed copper, though it had a sharper late-day selloff, ending at $6.3722/lb., down 15½ cents. Zinc was weak, closing at $0.6852/lb., down more than a penny and a half. Aluminum had a good day, adding more than 2 cents, to $0.7194/lb., while lead was lower, dropping more than a penny, to $0.7437/lb.
Copper led the industrial metals generally lower, although aluminum was an exception, as traders reacted primarily to the dollar’s rally.
However, some analysts believe that decent underlying support kept copper from falling even farther.
“Copper’s downside was limited with investors choosing to focus on the positives — most notably the surprisingly strong U.S. unemployment data on Friday and strong Chinese demand signals,” said Michael Gross, a futures analyst with Optionsellers.com in Tampa, Florida.
Gross added that, “You may be getting a little pressure from the dollar, but a lot of traders seem to be looking at the glass as more half full right now.”
Stockpiles prolonged their freefall. Copper inventories monitored by the LME dropped by another 2,125 metric tons yesterday, to 297,050 tons.
In company news, OZ Minerals, the Australian mining company seeking to refinance A$1.1 billion ($865 million) of debt, said two unsolicited recapitalization proposals—from institutions including RFC Group and Royal Bank of Canada–were “inferior” to an offer from China’s Minmetals Group.
“In the Minmetals transaction, we have a proposal to resolve OZ Minerals’ refinancing issues that is both highly certain and offers value to our shareholders,” Chairman Barry Cusack wrote in a statement. The alternatives don’t offer a “complete solution,” Cusack said.
Source: Base Metals Mostly Lower
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Doug Casey is a contrarian investor, sought-after public speaker and author of several books. His work "Crisis Investing" held the position of # 1 bestseller on the New York Times list for 26 consecutive weeks. Doug's unusual views on the economy - and just about everything else - have gained a huge following in the investment community, and it certainly helps that his stock recommendations of undervalued junior exploration companies have made his subscribers millions. Now in its 27th year, Doug's monthly newsletter, the International Speculator, is one of the most established and esteemed publications on gold, silver and other natural resource investments. Together with the Casey Energy Speculator, it covers a broad range of carefully selected stocks with the very real potential of double- and triple-digit returns within 12 to 24 months.