Market News Commodities Sink Third Day on Concerns About U.S. Deficit, Europe’s Debt |
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Commodities sank a third day on speculation that U.S. lawmakers won?€™t agree on a plan to reduce the deficit and amid concern <a href="http://topics.bloomberg.com/europe/" The Standard & Poor?€™s GSCI Index of 24 raw materials fell 1.4 percent. Cotton slumped to a 14-month low, cocoa slid to the lowest in 30 months and silver also declined. A 12-member bipartisan debt-reduction committee will probably announce today that it can?€™t reach agreement on deficit reductions of at least $1.2 trillion. Germany?€™s Finance Ministry said the country?€™s expansion has gotten ?€œnoticeably slower.?€ ?€œThe euro-zone debt crisis and news that the U.S. Congress has failed to agree to measures to reduce the budget deficit depressed commodities,?€ Greg Grow, the director of agribusiness at Archer Financial Services Inc. in Chicago, said in a telephone interview. Today is the deadline for the Congressional Budget Office to receive information for analyzing how a proposal would affect the budget deficit ahead of the supercommittee?€™s Nov. 23 target for reaching a deal. Germany?€™s Bundesbank tempered its forecast for gross domestic product in Europe?€™s largest economy to expand between 0.5 percent and 1 percent in 2012 from a June prediction of 1.8 percent. Copper futures for March delivery dropped 2.7 percent to $3.327 a pound at 2:38 p.m. on the Comex in New York. Earlier, the price touched $3.2885, the lowest for a most-active contract since Oct. 21. The metal declined 7.7 percent in the previous three weeks. Oil DropsCrude oil for January delivery fell 75 cents, or 0.8 percent, to $96.92 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The price ranged from $95.24 to $97.86. Futures are up 6.1 percent this year. Cotton for March delivery fell 3.1 percent to 90.41 cents a pound on ICE Futures U.S. in New York. Earlier, the commodity touched 90.16 cents, the lowest for a most-active contract since September 2010. Cocoa for March delivery retreated 1.8 percent to $2,414 a metric ton on ICE Futures U.S. in New York. Earlier, the price touched $2,403, the lowest for a most-active contract since May 2009. The chocolate ingredient is heading for its sixth straight decline, the longest slump since March. Silver for December delivery dropped 3.1 percent to $31.405 an ounce on the Comex. The price has increased 14 percent in the past 12 months. Gold for December delivery slipped as much as 2.6 percent to $1,680 an ounce, the lowest price since Oct. 24 on the Comex in New York. The Standard & Poor?€™s 500 Index dropped 1.7 percent in New York, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average decreased 2.1 percent. -With assistance from Mark Shenk in New York, Jeff Wilson in Chicago and Yi Tian in New York. Editors: Dan Stets, Bill Banker To contact the reporter on this story: Mario Parker in Chicago at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it To contact the editor responsible for this story: Dan Stets at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Authors: Commodities - Yahoo! News Search Results |
