Dollar pushes commodities lower
December 8th, 2009 by Bryden Elssmann
Closing Data
| Current | Change | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dow Jones | 10390.11 | 1.21 | 0.0% |
| NASDAQ | 2189.61 | -4.74 | -0.2% |
| S P 500 | 1103.25 | -2.73 | -0.2% |
| FTSE 100 | 5310.66 | -11.7 | -0.2% |
| Nikkei 225 | 10167.6 | 145.01 | 1.4% |
| ASX 200 | 4,676 | -25.8 | -0.5% |
| COMEX Gold - Dec 09 | 1164 | -5.5 | -0.5% |
| COMEX Silver - Sep 09 | 18.36 | -0.16 | -0.9% |
| COMEX Copper - Sep 09 | 320.9 | -2.85 | -0.9% |
| WTI Spot | 73.93 | -1.54 | -2.0% |
| AUD-USD | 0.9128 | -0.0004 | -0.0% |
| Aluminium | 2103 | -3.5 | -0.2% |
| Copper | 6920.5 | -105.5 | -1.5% |
| Lead | 2297 | -48 | -2.0% |
| Nickel | 15975 | 70 | 0.4% |
| Tin | 14950 | -100 | -0.7% |
| Zinc | 2301 | -52.5 | -2.2% |
US stocks were mixed following a choppy session on Wall Street. The market was impacted by a strong dollar, falling oil and gold prices and comments from the Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke that cooled worries about higher interest rates. The Dow was barely unchanged finishing up 1.21 points while the S&P 500 finished down 2.73 points. European markets were also mixed.
The report by the Federal Reserve was another strong indication that the US economy had turned a corner, however doubts still exist around interest rates. If the economy begins improving at a faster than expected pace, long-term inflation threats could come into play. This concern pushed the US dollar higher driving dollar-traded commodities lower.
The US dollar was also a factor in oil’s initial move lower during the session. Oil tends to fall when the US dollar rises, as it makes the commodity more expensive to other currency holders. With concerns over the extent of the economic recovery and the demand for crude, prices were down 2 percent to $US73.93 a barrel.
Gold prices also extended their decline for a second straight session as the dollar continued to rise. Gold slid $US5.50 to settle at $US1,164 an ounce after shedding $US26 earlier in the session. Gold prices were driven lower following better-than-expected jobs report from the US government.
The Australian share market is likely to open slightly weaker this morning after comments from U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke ignited concern for the health of a recovery in the US economy.
The SPI is flat currently trading up 1 point to 4674
Contact your Freeman Fox Stockbroker on 07 3031 9960 or 1800 003 369 Ext 7.
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