Commodities were off to a lackluster start this morning as investors gear up for a busy week of trade negotiations, monetary policy announcements, economic releases, and corporate results.
In Shanghai, base metal prices were mostly lower this morning although SHFE zinc was a notable exception, settling 0.8% higher for the day. In London, LME 3-mo. copper and aluminum were little changed around $5,965/mt (=$2.71/lb.) and $1,802/mt (=81.7 cents/lb.), respectively, although 3-mo. nickel briefly dipped below $14,000 per mt (=$6.35/lb.) early on. In New York, NYMEX crude oil prices were recently holding up above $56 per barrel although, as Reuters reports, prices are reacting to shifting sentiment surrounding the U.S.-China trade talks this week. In precious metals trading, COMEX gold futures dipped below $1,420 per troy ounce in early trading while silver futures were steady at $16.40/to. In foreign exchange trading the British pound slipped to $1.233 while the euro was holding steady around $1.113.
