Disaster Declared in 26 U.S. States as Drought Sears Midwest (Source: Bloomberg)
More than 1,000 counties in 26 states are being named natural-disaster areas, the biggest such declaration ever by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, as drought grips the Midwest. The declaration makes farmers and ranchers in 1,016 counties -- about a third of those in the entire country -- eligible for low-interest loans to help them weather the drought, wildfires and other disasters, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said today. The USDA is also changing procedures to allow disaster claims to be processed more quickly and reducing the penalty ranchers are assessed for allowing livestock to graze on land set aside for conservation. “Agriculture remains a bright spot in our nation’s economy,” Vilsack said. “We need to be cognizant of the fact that drought and weather conditions have severely impacted farmers around the country.” The declaration is effective as of tomorrow.
Moderate to extreme drought now covers about 53 percent of the Midwest, the country’s main growing region, fueling crop- price gains that are the biggest this year among the 24 commodities tracked by the Standard & Poor’s GSCI Spot Index. The rallies are boosting costs for companies from McDonald’s Corp. (MCD) and Coca-Cola Co. (KO) to Archer Daniels Midland Co. (ADM) and Smithfield Foods Inc. (SFD)
U.S. From Midwest to Coast Faces Hot Weather Next Week (Source: Bloomberg)
The eastern U.S. from the Midwest to the Northeast may swelter next week as another round of temperatures in the 90s Fahrenheit (30s Celsius) raises energy use by as much as 30 percent and dries crops. Temperatures along the East Coast may be 5 degrees above normal while reaching 8 degrees higher in the Midwest, including Chicago, from July 16-20, according to Commodity Weather Group LLC in Bethesda, Maryland. “The heat indexes can get up into the 100s” because the higher temperatures will be accompanied by higher humidity, CWG President Matt Rogers said in a telephone interview. “It’s going to be a strong demand period, that’s for sure.” More than 6,000 high temperature records have been broken or tied in the U.S. since June 1, the start of summer for meteorologists, while natural gas futures advanced 13 percent from June 1 through yesterday amid increased demand for fuel to run air conditioners. Natural gas is used to produce about 32 percent of U.S. power.
From Chicago to New York, residents may need at least 30 percent more energy to cool down next week, said David Salmon, owner of Weather Derivatives in Belton, Missouri. Parts of upstate New York may use 80 percent more.
DTN Closing Grain Comments 07/11 14:48 : Grains Ride Roller-Coaster Wednesday (Source: CME)
After trading sharply higher tied to the bullish USDA reports, grain contracts proceeded to run out of buying interest and closed well off session highs following a volatile day. Pressure came from technical selling despite a long-term supply and demand outlook that continues to grow more bullish. Adding to the odd day, wheat was able to close higher with a late round of commercial buying interest.
Pro Farmer: After the Bell Wheat Recap (Source: CME)
Wheat futures were highly volatile today, posting double-digit gains and losses during the session. Buyers returned late in the session to pull futures to a mid-range close. Chicago wheat closed mostly 2 to 5 cents higher; Kansas City ended around 7 to 9 cents higher; and Minneapolis wheat closed narrowly mixed. Futures followed corn early in the session, but traders shifted their attention to report data into the close, helping the market to a more favorable finish than the other feed grain amid spread unwinding.
Wheat Market Recap Report September (Source: CME)
Wheat finished up 6 1/4 at 827 1/2, 21 off the high and 24 1/4 up from the low. December Wheat closed up 3 3/4 at 839. This was 22 3/4 up from the low and 21 1/2 off the high. Chicago wheat traded lower midday but rallied into the close on short covering and continued concern over Black Sea production. The report this morning was considered bullish for the wheat market. All wheat production was pegged at 2.224 billion bushels which is 23 million below expectations and compares with 2.234 billion last month. The USDA pegged spring wheat production at 435 million bushels while the trade was expecting something close to 500 million bushels. US ending stocks for the 2012/13 season were reported at 664 million bushels which was 54 million lower than trade expectations and 30 million lower than the June estimate. World ending stocks for the 2012/13 season came in at 182.4 million tonnes as compared with 185.7 million last month. The 3 million tonne revision was in line with market estimates. The 2012/13 Russian wheat production was cut by 4 million tonnes to 49 million tonnes and Kazakhstan production was revised lower by 2 million tonnes to 13 million tonnes. The USDA made headway in revising world wheat production lower but the trade believes further revisions will be made in the future. September Oats closed down 12 3/4 at 364 1/4. This was 5 1/4 up from the low and 19 off the high.
Pro Farmer: After the Bell Corn Recap (Source: CME)
Traders' initial reaction to USDA's report led to sharp gains in corn futures, but that was eventually followed by profit-taking to result in a wide daily trading range. Futures ended with losses in the teens in most contracts, but well off session lows. Headlining USDA's reports was the 20-bu.-per-acre reduction in its 2012 yield projection to 146 bu. per acre. But profit-taking increased as news circulated that USDA was going to make a drought-related announcement, as well as the increased attention on corn in the general media.
Corn Market Recap for 7/11/2012 (Source: CME)
September Corn finished down 14 1/4 at 704 1/4, 44 3/4 off the high and 18 3/4 up from the low. December Corn closed down 13 1/2 at 704. This was 18 3/4 up from the low and 44 off the high. December corn traded sharply lower on the day after posting a new high for the move at 748. The market was trading a potential corn yield below 150 bushels/acre prior to the report and traders took profits after the USDA confirmed the yield. The USDA report this morning was considered bullish against trade expectations. The USDA pegged ending stocks for the 2012/13 season at 1.183 billion bushels which was about 100 million below expectations and compares with 1.881 billion last month. The USDA pegged corn yield at 146 bushels per acre as compared with 166 bushels/acre last month and 147.2 last year. Total usage revised down by 1.055 billion bushels with 300 million in export, 650 million in feed usage and down 100 million in ethanol. To show further evidence of demand destruction, the ethanol production for the week ending July 6 averaged 821,000 barrels per day. This is down 4.20% vs. last week and down 5.85% vs. last year. Corn used in last week's production is estimated at 87.45 million bushels, a new 16 week low. Corn use needs to average 99.621 million bushels per week to meet this crop year's USDA estimate of 5.05 billion bushels. The weather forecast is still questionable for the central Midwest with rain in the forecast for the southeast and drier conditions in the west. Continued stress on pollinating corn will risk further yield loss. September Rice finished down 0.335 at 15.11, 0.5 off the high and 0.15 up from the low.
Corn Drops From 10-Month High as Rally Curbs Demand; Soy Falls (Source: Bloomberg)
Corn futures tumbled from a 10-month high on speculation that a drought-fueled rally in prices will curb demand. Soybeans fell from a four-year peak on forecasts for rain that may boost yields. Ethanol output in the U.S. fell 4.2 percent last week to the lowest in almost two years, the government said today, and Valero Energy Corp. (VLO) has halted production at two distilleries. The U.S. Department of Agriculture predicted that 2012 meat and poultry output will be 0.7 percent smaller than forecast last month. Corn prices through yesterday surged 42 percent since mid-June as crops withered under the worst drought since 1988. “Demand is shutting down, led by the ethanol slowdown,” Chad Henderson, a market analyst at Prime Agricultural Consulting Inc. in Brookfield, Wisconsin, said in a telephone interview. “People are already liquidating the hog-breeding herd and dairy cows. Physical consumers can’t use corn and turn a profit at these prices.” Corn futures for December delivery fell 1.9 percent to close at $7.04 a bushel at 2 p.m. on the Chicago Board of Trade, the third drop in four sessions. Earlier, the grain reached $7.48, the highest for the most- active contract since Sept. 13. Today, the USDA cut its domestic production estimate by 12 percent, a month after predicting a record harvest. The U.S. is the world’s largest grower and exporter. Crop conditions as of July 8 were the worst for that date since the drought of 1988, and areas of moderate to extreme drought have expanded to 53 percent of the Midwest, government data show.
Soybean Weather
Soybean fields from Louisiana to southern Ohio will get 1 inch (2.5 centimeters) to 4.5 inches of rain in the next five days, according to the National Weather Service. As much a 1 inch may help crops in the northern and western Midwest beginning next week, the government said. The USDA said today that dry weather may cut yields by 7.7 percent, leaving output at 3.050 billion bushels this year, compared with 3.205 billion estimated in June. “Some of the weather models are wetter into next week, and that set off selling in soybeans,” which can produce new flowers and boost yields in July and August, Richard Feltes, a vice president at R.J. O’Brien & Associates in Chicago, said in a telephone interview. “It’s a classic run-up in prices into a key USDA report, and people sold on the news.” Soybean futures for November delivery fell 1 percent to $15.225 a bushel in Chicago. Earlier, the price rose as much as 2.4 percent to $15.75, the highest since July 2008.
Demand Cuts
U.S. corn usage in the year that begins Sept. 1 may reach 12.72 billion bushels, down 7.7 percent from the forecast in June, the government said today. Demand for soybeans was cut 4.6 percent to 3.105 billion bushels from a month earlier. “Trade action today suggests much of the U.S. crop-yield erosion is already accounted for by USDA,” Feltes said. “Dismal chart action today could mark a near-term top as some fund-longs opt to lock in profit amid a belief that necessary corn rationing is under way.” Corn is the biggest U.S. crop, valued at $76.5 billion in 2011, followed by soybeans at $35.8 billion, government figures show.
Crops Surge as U.S. Cuts Harvest Outlooks Amid Parching Drought (Source: Bloomberg)
Corn surged to the highest price since September and soybeans reached a four-year high after the U.S. cut its production forecasts because of the worst drought since 1988. Wheat extended this year’s rally. The U.S. Department of Agriculture reduced its forecast of this year’s domestic corn crop, the world’s largest, by 12 percent just a month after predicting a record harvest. The domestic soybean estimate was cut 4.8 percent, and global wheat production will be less than expected in June as a dry spell hurts yields in Russia, the USDA said today in a report. Areas of moderate to extreme drought have expanded to 53 percent of the Midwest, the main growing region, fueling crop- price gains that are the biggest this year among the 24 commodities tracked by the Standard & Poor’s GSCI Spot Index. The rallies are boosting costs for companies from McDonald’s Corp. (MCD) and Coca-Cola Co. to Archer Daniels Midland Co. and Smithfield Foods Inc.
“The drought of 2012 will be one for the records,” said Peter Meyer, the senior director for agricultural commodities at PIRA Energy Group in New York. “Whether it’s ethanol or livestock, no one is immune from this impending disaster. The ramifications will be widespread, affecting everything from your food to your gasoline.” Corn futures for December delivery rose 0.7 percent to $7.2275 a bushel at 10:26 a.m. on the Chicago Board of Trade, after reaching $7.48, the highest for the most-active contract since Sept. 13.
GRAINS-Corn near 13-mth high, wheat firm ahead of US report
SINGAPORE, July 11 (Reuters) - Chicago corn rose 1 percent to trade near a 13-month peak, while soybeans hovered close to record highs as investors took positions ahead of a U.S. report expected to show sharply lower yields due to a drought.
"We could see some more upside for grains as most people are expecting the USDA to slash grain crop estimates," said Lynette Tan, an analyst with Phillip Futures in Singapore.
Ukraine AgMin cuts grain export outlook to 20 mln T
KIEV, July 11 (Reuters) - Ukraine's Agriculture Ministry has cut its outlook for the former Soviet republic's grain exports in the current season to 20 million tonnes from 22-23 million tonnes, minister Mykola Prysyazhnyuk said on Wednesday.
"We see (exports) at 20 million tonnes now. We are seeing very slow pace of exports in July, having exported just 260,000 tonnes so far," he told reporters.
USDA expected to slash corn crop forecast by a third
WASHINGTON, July 11 (Reuters) - The U.S. government will cut its corn supply forecast by a third on expectations a severe drought will shrivel the crop across the Midwest, traders said ahead of a key report on Wednesday.
The worst drought in a quarter-century has scorched the Farm Belt and will cut corn stocks to their lowest in 16 years, the third year in a row for tight stocks.
PFGBest scandal deals farmers another blow after MF Global
CHICAGO, July 10 (Reuters) - Farmers on Tuesday fumed at the prospect of financial losses, or at a minimum a lengthy wait for the return of frozen funds, due to alleged mismanagement at brokerage PFGBest, and some said they had been burned for the last time.
The U.S. futures industry reeled as regulators accused Iowa-based PFGBest of misappropriating more than $200 million in customer funds for more than two years, a new blow to trader trust just months after MF Global's collapse.
Rain to fall on parched US Midwest by end of week-forecasters
CHICAGO, July 10 (Reuters) - Corn and soybean fields in much of the U.S. Midwest will remain dry until the end of the week, with temperatures hovering in the 80s and 90s degrees Fahrenheit, forecasters predicted Tuesday.
However, the return of typical summer weather is unlikely to reverse the damage to corn and soybean crops caused by the crippling drought and heat wave that hit the Midwest during the past month.
Texas drought, British heat linked to climate change
WASHINGTON, July 10 (Reuters) - Climate change increased the odds for the kind of extreme weather that prevailed in 2011, a year that saw severe drought in Texas, unusual heat in England and was one of the 15 warmest years on record, scientists reported on Tuesday.
Overall, 2011 was a year of extreme events - from historic droughts in East Africa, northern Mexico and the southern United States to an above-average cyclone season in the North Atlantic and the end of Australia's wettest two-year period ever, scientists from the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the United Kingdom's Met Office said.
Black Sea region cuts grain forecast on bad weather
KIEV, July 10 (Reuters) - Hot and dry weather, which has dominated Black Sea regions for much of the growing season, has forced Russia, Ukraine and Kazakhstan to reduce their harvest forecasts and the region's total grain output could be at least 35 million tonnes less than in 2011.
Russia, hit by severe drought first in the southern breadbasket regions and then in Siberia, could lose 10 to 15 million tonnes this year against 2011.
EU wheat crops need sun after wet summer start
HAMBURG, July 10 (Reuters) - Wheat crops in west Europe urgently need sunshine to push them towards ripeness and high quality after a very wet and cloudy start to the summer, analysts and traders said on Tuesday.
Harvest forecasts are still generally optimistic for the top three EU producers France, Germany and Britain. But the wet weather which has spoilt countless holidays is now starting to worry wheat farmers.
Kazakhstan lowers grain crop forecast on dry weather
ASTANA, July 10 (Reuters) - Kazakhstan has lowered its 2012 grain crop forecast to a "below-average" 14 million tonnes due to a drought in southern parts of the vast, landlocked country, Agriculture Ministry officials said on Tuesday.
The latest forecast falls below the ministry's previous crop estimate of between 15 million and 16 million tonnes and is only slightly more than half of the post-Soviet record 27 million tonnes harvested last year.
SOFTS-ICE sugar, cocoa edge up early, coffee eases
LONDON, July 11 (Reuters) - Raw sugar futures on ICE edged up in early trade as the market continued to derive support from concern about production prospects in parts of India and Brazil linked to adverse weather. Sugar futures on ICE rose with October up 0.11 cent or 0.5 percent to 22.60 cents a lb by 0901 GMT. The contract touched 23.05 cents on Tuesday, the highest level for the benchmark front month since April 18.
Survey highlights failures of Indonesia cocoa scheme
JAKARTA, July 11 (Reuters) - A $350 million government programme aimed at reviving Indonesia's cocoa industry has suffered a serious setback after most newly planted trees died, a survey showed, with many farmers now switching to oil palms instead.
Indonesia is the world's third largest cocoa producer but disease and adverse weather conditions have hampered supplies for years.
Ghana 2012 mid-crop cocoa seen down 60 pct-sources
ACCRA, July 10 (Reuters) - Ghana's minor mid-cocoa output for the 2012 season is expected to fall 60 percent to 42,000 tonnes, compared with about 107,000 tonnes harvested in the previous seasons, three sources close to industry regulator Cocobod said on Tuesday.
Ghana runs a two-cycle cocoa year comprising the major harvest from October to May, which is mainly exported and the July to September light crop which is discounted to local processors.
Dry weather to boost Colombia's 2013 coffee crop
BOGOTA, July 10 (Reuters) - Colombia's coffee crop for the first half of 2013 is shaping up to be one of the best in years as drier weather and the possible return of the El Nino weather phenomenon may boost production, exporters and growers said.
After years of too much rain, good sunlight over the past six weeks has boosted flowerings, which could lead to a greater number of ripe cherries and help the country reach the 9 million 60-kg bag target for 2013, they said.
Sudan Crude Stuck Off Singapore Shows Trade as War Victim (Source: Bloomberg)
More than 15 miles offshore Singapore a black-and-red hulled tanker has been stranded for about 150 days holding South Sudanese crude worth almost $60 million, a hostage of a two-decade war. South Sudan says its northern neighbor stole the shipment on the ETC Isis and about 2 million barrels more. Sudan says it had the right to sell the oil. The feud over the cargoes, worth more than seven days of the South’s annual economic output, has entangled lawyers in London, shipowners in Cairo, buyers in Japan, dealers in the British Virgin Islands and Trafigura Beheer BV, the world’s third-biggest oil trader.
The dispute underscores the difference between the physical commodities market, where prices and identities of buyers and sellers are typically kept private, and the regulated exchanges of Wall Street and London, where investors deal in futures and options representing billions of barrels of crude every day. It’s in the buying and selling of the world’s 84 million barrels of daily oil output, far from the financial markets at least 14 times bigger, that trading and war collide. “You have this dispute between two parties over the oil and the tanker is now stuck in no-man’s land,” said Mark Tan, a partner at law firm Watson, Farley & Williams in Singapore who has more than 14 years’ experience in dispute resolution and heads the shipping litigation practice. “It’s always better to be cautious about what you’re carrying. Sometimes a cargo can be trouble.”
Iraq Crude Production Overtakes Iran as OPEC Trims Output (Source: Bloomberg)
Iraq’s crude production overtook Iran’s last month for the first time in more than two decades as Iran led a decline in OPEC output ahead of a European Union ban on purchases from the nation, according to the producer group. Iraq pumped 2.984 million barrels a day in June, outpacing Iran’s 2.963 million, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries’ Vienna-based secretariat said today in its Monthly Oil Market Report. That’s the first time Iraq’s output has exceeded Iran’s since 1988, when the countries ended their eight-year war, statistics compiled by BP Plc (BP/) show.
The reduction from Iran, ahead of full sanctions by the EU that started on July 1, led to the second monthly decline in total OPEC production to 31.36 million barrels a day in June, versus 31.47 million in May, according to the group’s estimates, which are based on secondary sources including analysts and news agencies. Falling OPEC production last month coincided with a 4 percent drop in Brent crude on London’s ICE Futures Europe exchange, contributing to a 20 percent price decline for the second quarter. “Iran and Angola led the crude oil output decrease, while crude oil output from Iraq, Kuwait, and Libya experienced the largest increase in June,” the monthly report said, without elaborating on reasons for the changes
OIL - Brent rises above $98, shrinking US stockpiles eyed
SINGAPORE, July 11 (Reuters) - Brent rose above $98 a barrel, recovering slightly from the previous session's losses, ahead of U.S. inventory data that is expected to show crude stocks shrinking for a third week in the world's largest oil consumer.
"The market is neutral at the moment, stabilizing after a sharp decline in the second quarter," said Ken Hasegawa, a commodity sales manager at Newedge Japan.
Iran keeps oil flowing to China despite freight dispute
BEIJING, July 11 (Reuters) - Iran is shipping crude oil to its top buyer China despite a dispute over freight terms, sending so far a third of the 12 million barrels due to load in the first 20 days of July, traders and shipping sources said.
The dispute between Chinese state refining giant Sinopec and the National Iranian Tanker Co (NITC) threatens to delay the sale of millions of barrels of crude exports from Iran as it faces tough Western sanctions targeting its oil sector.
Norway restarts fields, no strike repeat for 2 years
OSLO, July 10 (Reuters) - Norway restarted some major oil and gas fields on Tuesday after the government ordered an end to a 16-day strike by offshore workers, still unhappy about pensions and retirement issues but unable to repeat the action for at least two more years.
About 10 percent of Norway's 7,000 offshore staff - among the best paid in the global oil industry - had been on strike to demand retirement with full pensions at 62, causing a 13 percent loss of the country's oil output and 4 percent of gas production.
Sanctions squeeze forces Iran to cut oilfield flow
LONDON, July 10 (Reuters) - Tough Western sanctions are forcing Iran to take drastic action and shut off wells at its vast oilfields, reducing production to levels last seen more than two decades ago and costing Tehran billions in lost revenues.
Iran struggled to sell its oil in the run-up to the European Union ban on July 1, yet it managed to sustain oilfield flows at lofty rates above 3 million barrels per day (bpd) by stashing unwanted barrels in tanks on land and on ships in the Gulf.
EIA cuts global oil demand forecast on slower economy
WASHINGTON, July 10 - The U.S. Energy Information Administration on Tuesday cut its 2012 world oil demand growth forecast by 130,000 barrels per day to 670,000 bpd, citing expectations for slower global economic growth.
In its monthly forecast, the agency also cut its oil demand growth estimate for 2013 by 360,000 bpd to 730,000 bpd.
Euro Coal-Prices drop $1-$2/T, in line with oil
LONDON, July 10 (Reuters) - Physical prompt coal prices dropped by $1 to $2 a tonne on Tuesday in line with weaker oil - a third consecutive daily fall as buyers stayed on the sidelines.
Daily coal price moves of $2 to $4 have been frequent during the past month, following months of largely range-bound trading when prices moved in cents rather than dollars.
China H1 coal imports up 65.9 pct to 140 mln T -customs
BEIJING, July 10 (Reuters) - China imported 140 million tonnes of coal in the first six months of the year, up 65.9 percent compared to the same period of 2011, according to preliminary customs data issued on Tuesday.
A more detailed figure for the month of June alone will be issued later on Tuesday.
Oil Trades Near Two-Day High as U.S. Stockpiles Counter Europe (Source: Bloomberg)
Oil traded near the highest level in two days in New York after U.S. stockpiles fell and refinery utilization rose, countering concern that fuel demand will falter as manufacturing stagnates in Europe. Futures swung between gains and losses after rising 2.3 percent yesterday. Crude supplies in the U.S., the world’s biggest oil user, slid 4.7 million barrels last week, the Energy Department said. They were forecast to drop by 1.38 million, according to the median estimate in a Bloomberg News survey. Refineries ran at 92.7 percent of capacity, the most since July 2007. Industrial output in the euro area was probably unchanged in May from April, a survey showed before a report today. “To move higher from here we would need to see two out of three big global economies - Europe, the U.S. or China - firmly back into growth territory,” said Michael McCarthy, a chief market strategist at CMC Markets in Sydney who predicts oil will trade between $81.50 a barrel and $88.50 a barrel.
The stockpile drop was “clearly the driver” for yesterday’s gains, he said. Oil for August delivery was at $85.71 a barrel, down 10 cents, in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange at 11:46 a.m. Sydney time. The contract yesterday increased $1.90 to $85.81, the highest close since July 9. Prices are down 13 percent this year.
Iron Ore-Shanghai steel at contract low, ore shaky
SINGAPORE/SHANGHAI, July 11 (Reuters) - Key China rebar futures hit a contract low on Wednesday, dogged by soft demand in the world's top steel consumer, curbing appetite for raw material iron ore with bids for spot cargoes staying weak.
Major miners, such as Vale and BHP Billiton , are offering several cargoes on the spot market, although traders expect the material to be sold at prices lower than previous deals.
China iron ore imports fall 8.7 pct in June from May
SHANGHAI, July 10 (Reuters) - China's iron ore imports fell 8.7 percent in June from the previous month, as the world's largest buyer cut shipments on tepid demand, while traders expect a further decline in bookings in July, given little recovery in steel prices.
Iron ore imports dropped to 58.31 million tonnes in June from 63.84 million the previous month, preliminary data from customs showed on Tuesday.
Gold 22% Rally to Record Seen by Eric Sprott: Commodities (Source: Bloomberg)
Gold will climb to a record by yearend as the global economy slows from the weight of too much debt, says Eric Sprott, the founder and chairman of Canadian fund manager Sprott Inc. (SII) “I just can’t imagine the demand for gold is going down,” he said in a July 9 interview at Bloomberg’s Toronto office. “I don’t personally see a solution to the problem that we’re in, the financial leveraging issue that we all have where everybody wants to shed debt and there’s no buyers.” Sprott’s company manages funds investing mainly in gold, silver, and precious-metals equities. He expects bullion will rise as investors seek the safest assets while governments spend to stimulate their economies, increasing chances that inflation will accelerate. Gold, which had advanced for 11 successive years, is almost unchanged so far in 2012. It’s 18 percent lower than the record $1,923.70 an ounce traded on Sept. 6 in New York after investors favored buying the dollar amid Europe’s escalating debt crisis.
The metal “should go to new highs before yearend, that would be my guess,” said Sprott, 67. “Gold has blown away every financial market in the world since 2000, let’s not forget that.”
Weak capesize rates push Baltic index lower
July 10 (Reuters) - The Baltic Exchange's main sea freight index, which tracks rates for ships carrying dry commodities, fell on Tuesday driven by a drop in capesize vessel rates.
The overall index, which gauges the cost of shipping commodities such as iron ore, cement, grain, coal and fertiliser, slipped 2 points or 0.17 percent to 1,160 points. It has fallen about 33 percent this year.
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