Tuesday, 29 August 2017

What’s next? – GOLD, OIL 29.08.17

Posted by Valentine at 13:25 Labels:

GOLD

Gold prices rose to ten-month highs in Asian hours on Tuesday, as market players quickly turned to safe-havens after North Korea launched a ballistic missile that crossed Japan.

In response to this new threat, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe called an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council to strengthen measures against North Korea.

The meeting will be held later in the day, with Japan, South Korea and the US looking forward to a more aggressive approach to deal with North Korea.

A few weeks back, US Marine Corps General Dunford said the Trump administration aimed at resolving this geopolitical crisis in a diplomatic way, but warned that the military alternative was still on the table in case sanctions did not make any effects.

Over the phone, President Donald Trump said to his Japanese counterpart that the US “stands with Japan 100%”, suggesting they will back them against further hostilities from Pyongyang.

On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures were trading 0.79 percent or $10.40 up at $1,325.70 a troy ounce as of 07:35 GMT.

Earlier in the session, the yellow metal reached its highest level since November 2016 at $1,330.00 as investors searched for financial shelter against political uncertainty.

Other safe-haven assets such as the Japanese yen and the Swiss franc also increased their value against major rivals across the board, benefiting from a solid demand.

OIL

Oil prices were mixed in early trading on Tuesday, partially recovering from previous session’s losses, although hurricane Harvey continued to keep benchmarks under pressure.

The US West Texas Intermediate crude futures traded 0.24 percent higher at $46.68 per barrel as of 08:00 GMT, while the London-based Brent contracts on the ICE Futures Exchange in London were down 0.12 percent to $51.83 a barrel.

Gasoline futures returned gains, easing by almost 7 percent in Asian hours. Prices increased to a two-year high Monday as Harvey caused strong flooding along the Texas Gulf Coast.

Refineries from major companies such as Exxon Mobil, Royal Dutch Shell, Petrobras and Phillips 66 were shut down, costing nearly 2 million barrels per day in refining capacity. The Gulf is considered to be America’s energy heart. Gasoline reached a peak of $1.7799 per gallon.

Ahead in the day, traders will be paying attention to fresh crude and refined products stockpiles figures from the American Petroleum Institute. The weekly report will be out as of 20:30 GMT.

On Wednesday, the US Energy Information Administration will release official data, with market analysts forecasting a 2.1 million barrels drop in crude inventories.

Meanwhile, Libya’s Zawiya oil refinery is using only half of its total 120,000 bpd capacity in reaction to a shutdown at the the Sharara oilfield, which has been blocked by a militia. In Colombia, ELN rebels attacked the Cano-Limon Covenas oil pipeline.

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