The base metals were mixed on Monday. Copper was down in the pre-dawn hours, rose from there to mid-morning, but then sagged again to finish little changed at $3.8418/lb., up three-quarters of a cent. Nickel plunged in the pre-dawn hours, then tried to rally but eventually gave up all of its gains, to close just off its intraday low at $9.3417/lb., down 31 cents.

The base metals were almost all in the black on Monday. Copper was off during the pre-dawn hours but rallied during the New York session to finish in the middle of the day’s trading range at $3.8898/lb., down a half-cent.

Doug Casey says: ” The Peruvian situation is provoking a lot of worry, even though it has yet to cause major disruptions, as it appears to be worsening. Miners at Peru’s largest copper-zinc pit, Antamina, owned by BHP Billiton, are on strike, but a company official said its effect on production was minimal. “

Gold got taken down from the far East through to the New York open yesterday, bottoming at $932, but rose slowly and steadily through the NYMEX and Globex to finish at $945.30/oz., up $5.60. Overnight, gold has edged lower.