Analysis Topic: Commodity Markets - Metals, Softs & Oils

The analysis published under this topic are as follows.

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

The Best Way to Invest in the Natural Gas Rebound / Commodities / Natural Gas

By: Money_Morning

Dr. Kent Moors writes: On Saturday, I outlined why natural gas prices were moving up.

Today, let's talk about how investors can make some money off this.

As gas prices inch toward $4 per 1,000 cubic feet (or million BTUs) on the NYMEX futures market, we need to remember that this is not going to be either an accelerated rise or one that will be without volatility.

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

JP Morgan Cleared Of Conspiracy "To Drive Down Silver Prices" / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2013

By: GoldCore

Today’s AM fix was USD 1,602.50, EUR 1,238.41 and GBP 1,059.78 per ounce.
Yesterday’s AM fix was USD 1,599.50, EUR 1,236.09 and GBP 1,057.45 per ounce.

Silver is trading at $28.86/oz, €22.38/oz and £19.16/oz. Platinum is trading at $1,605.25/oz, palladium at $757.00/oz and rhodium at $1,250/oz.

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Investors Seeking Gold And Silver On Banking Instability / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2013

By: Jeb_Handwerger

For weeks, I alerted you to a yen devaluation and warned that it may next turn into a Euro decline, which could then be followed by a U.S. greenback collapse. All of these global bailout attempts and now this levy on depositors in Cyprus could destabilize the European banking system and boost the discounted gold (GLD) and silver (SLV) prices.

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

What Cyprus "Bailout" Means for Stocks and Gold / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2013

By: Money_Morning

Worries over the plan to force bank depositors in Cyprus to help fund a $13 billion international bailout rattled global equities and sent the U.S. stock market today (Monday) lower.

Right after the open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the Standard & Poor's 500 Index and the Nasdaq were all sharply lower.

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Why Silver is a Steal At These Prices / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2013

By: Money_Morning

Lately there has been quite a divergence in the behavior of those investing in silver compared to those holding gold.

One group is running scared, while the other is calmly stocking up.

It looks as if many of the weak hands holding gold in the form of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are giving up and liquidating their positions. A record $4.1 billion was yanked out of gold ETFs in the month of February, a record high, according to the BlackRock ETP Landscape report. This figure was almost double the previous record set in January 2011 of $2.6 billion.

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Gold Safe Haven Demand Amid Fresh Cyprus Chaos / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2013

By: Adrian_Ash

The GOLD PRICE continued to hold above $1600 per ounce in Asian and early London trade on Tuesday, easing back from Monday's 3-week high as world stock markets struggled again amid fresh uncertainty and rumor over Euro-member Cyprus' banking crisis.

Silver below $29 per ounce held flat alongside other commodities, while major-government bond prices rose.

Monday, March 18, 2013

Imagining a Gold-Centric Global Financial System / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2013

By: The_Gold_Report

Robert Cohen, lead portfolio manager with Dynamic Funds, has been kicking up dust at conferences and in board rooms with his "revolutionary and simple" idea that gold mining companies should hold gold on their balance sheets and use gold-based loans. But the idea is gaining traction and he suggests in this Gold Report interview from the Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada conference that management teams and investors alike would do well to question their use of U.S. dollars as a functional currency.

The Gold Report: Robert, you presented a paper at the Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada conference that focused on, among other things, the uses of gold as a monetary asset. Please tell our readers about that.

Monday, March 18, 2013

Gold Jumps Over $1600 as Cyprus Bail-Out Hits Bank Savers / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2013

By: Adrian_Ash

WHOLESALE GOLD leapt 1% against the Dollar and 2.3% against the Euro at the start of Asian trade Monday, as global shares sank and major-government bonds rose following the Cyprus bail-out deal announced by European politicians at the weekend.

"[German negotiators] were hand in hand with Finns," says an unnamed official quoted by the Financial Times, "who were much more dogmatic" in forcing a levy worth €7 billion on ordinary bank depositors as part of the €17bn deal.

Monday, March 18, 2013

Copper New Move Up In The Making? / Commodities / Copper

By: Michael_Noonan

The last time we analyzed copper, we were buying at $3.75, anticipating an upside rally to the $4 area. Next day, we were stopped out with a few cents loss, and price has dropped recently to as low as the $3.47 area. Based on the speed of the decline and the heaviest volume along the way down, copper should drop even further, or so one might think.

Past history on a chart is important, but the most important part of all is the present tense developing market activity because it is the culmination of all previous efforts. We take another look at what the market is saying about where it may be headed.

Sunday, March 17, 2013

GOLD and SILVER Performance since 2001 - The Best Kept Secret In The Financial World / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2013

By: I_M_Vronsky

First let’s consider the outstanding performance of GOLD & SILVER since 2001. The chart below clearly demonstrates  the outrageously formidable appreciation of gold and silver vis-à-vis other asset classes during the past 12 years (to March 13, 2013). Specifically, here are the total increases in value during the period:

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Why Natural Gas Prices Will Continue to Rise / Commodities / Natural Gas

By: Raul_I_Meijer

Dr. Kent Moors writes: Not long ago, the market was laboring under expectations that the NYMEX futures contract for natural gas would remain at around $3 per 1,000 cubic feet (or million BTUs).

The pundits were proclaiming that a surplus of shale gas, over production, and historic storage surpluses translated into long-term discounts in natural gas prices.

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Finally... An Important Low for Gold Stocks / Commodities / Gold and Silver Stocks 2013

By: DailyWealth

Can the gold sector's "toehold" turn into a "foothold"?

For gold-stock traders, this is an important question...

Over the past few months, a big potential trading idea has shaped up. Gold stocks, which are some of the market's most volatile securities, have become extremely oversold. Sentiment toward the sector is terrible... and gold stocks are incredibly cheap relative to the price of gold.

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Where is the Gold and Silver Rally? What is Missing? / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2013

By: Michael_Noonan

So many headlines are saying "$5,000 Gold, or $10,000 Gold; Silver, The Investment of the Decade," etc, etc, etc. Will that happen? A history of failed fiat currencies says yes. When will it happen? That is the question few articles address because they simply have no clue, beyond their sensationalized headlines.

Who can best answer that question? It is not Who, but What, and that comes from the market itself, ever the most reliable source. The answers may not always satisfy, but the market is never wrong. What can be said with certainty is that before gold and silver, [PMs, Precious Metals], can go up, they first have to stop going down.

Saturday, March 16, 2013

How to Fix the Gold Fix / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2013

By: Adrian_Ash

US regulator the CFTC is anxious about the London gold fix. But what is the fix, and why...?

SO IS the London gold fix a fix? US derivatives-market regulators think it might be.

The CFTC is no doubt absolutely within its rights to question the use of certain prices as reference points (aka "marks") in US transactions. Joining the International Roundtable on Financial Benchmarks three weeks ago, its commissioner Bart Chilton said he also thought many other markets might deserve attention, too. But quite what a Washington commission overseeing the US futures markets might achieve – or hope to – as regards the London Fixings as a process, however, we can't imagine.

Saturday, March 16, 2013

Will Gold Be Dragged Lower by Stocks and Currencies? / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2013

By: P_Radomski_CFA

Recent developments on the currency market may worry some gold and silver investors, as dollar refused to move lower at the cyclical turning point, an issue which we touched upon in our last essay, and euro seems to have broken below its medium-term rising support line. This is so because we're used to strong negative correlation between these precious metals and the USD and the abovementioned situation seemingly suggests a bullish outlook for the U.S. currency (further supported by a negative one for euro). And this is why we invite you to read today's essay portion, as it reveals some interesting facts that shed new light on the outlook for the currency market and its link with precious metals. We'll start with USD's long-term chart (charts courtesy by http://stockcharts.com.)

Friday, March 15, 2013

Gold Stocks Incredibly Cheap, Whilst General Stock Market Making Hyper Top / Commodities / Gold and Silver Stocks 2013

By: Zeal_LLC

Gold miners have to be the most hated sector in the markets these days.  At best they’ve been forgotten as the hyper-complacent general stock markets continue to inexplicably levitate.  At worst they’re utterly despised.  But the breathtaking bearishness choking them has left gold stocks incredibly cheap relative to their profits.  This is a dream come true for battle-hardened contrarians who really want to buy low.

Valuations are the fundamental heart of stock investing, ultimately driving the vast majority of long-term performance.  Investors buy stocks because they want stakes in companies’ future profits streams.  The less they pay for each dollar of future profits, the better their ultimate returns.  Valuations measure how much profits cost today.  The price of future profits is also a direct function of prevailing stock prices.

Friday, March 15, 2013

Silver Stalls, Gold Gains as CFTC Clarifies London Price Manipulation Fix "Investigation" / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2013

By: Adrian_Ash

GOLD ticked higher but silver prices stalled Friday morning, as a rise in Asian stock markets failed to carry over into European or pre-opening trade in US equities.

The Euro currency rose sharply through $1.30, knocking the gold price in Euros back below €1220 per ounce, virtually unchanged for the week.

Friday, March 15, 2013

Gold and Silver Price Manipulation At London AM Fix Or New York COMEX? / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2013

By: GoldCore

Today’s AM fix was USD 1,593.25, EUR 1,219.39 and GBP 1,051.23 per ounce.
Yesterday’s AM fix was USD 1585.00, EUR 1225.83 and GBP 1061.05 per ounce.

Gold was marginally higher yesterday and silver marginally lower. Gold rose just 20 cents and closed at $1,588.50/oz. Silver fell 15 cents to close at $28.75/oz.

Silver is trading at $28.80/oz, €22.40/oz and £19.20/oz. Platinum rose to $1,587.25/oz, palladium to $771.00/oz and rhodium stayed at $1,250/oz.

Friday, March 15, 2013

U.S. Government Investigation of Gold Price Manipulation / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2013

By: Midas_Letter

Yesterday, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the regulator who ostensibly regulates the banks and major financial institutions who participate in the futures and commodities trading business, announced they were going to examine whether prices are being manipulated in the “world’s largest gold market”, according to a story in the Wall Street Journal.

For long time observers of the gold price and the fundamental and not-so-fundamental influences on its price movements, the announcement might have elicited a gasp of delight in the spirit of “It’s about time!”

Friday, March 15, 2013

Silver Possession Versus Silver Trust – A Safe Alternative to Direct Possession? / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2013

By: Dr_Jeff_Lewis

Value seeking investors are increasingly returning to the precious metals market. Furthermore, many of them will undoubtedly gravitate toward using the more conveniently traded alternatives to self-storing the metals.

The idea of taking physical possession of gold or silver currently seems almost taboo in the mind of the mainstream precious metals investor, although many alternative minded investors tend to see personal physical possession as the only safe option in the event of a financial collapse scenario.