Commodities fall hits Asian markets, oil up
MELBOURNE, May 12 (Reuters) - Asian share markets fell on Thursday after a second big sell-off in commodities in less than a week cut investor appetite for riskier investments and boosted the U.S. dollar, although oil prices clawed back some losses in early trade.
"There are a lot of hedge funds pulling (commodity) positions. They've been long, and it will be choppy and remain choppy while China is slowing," said Macquarie Equities strategist Neale Goldston-Morris.
US exports hit record high, trade gap widens on oil
WASHINGTON, May 11 (Reuters) - U.S. exports hit a record high in March, buoyed by the weak dollar and strengthening global demand as U.S. trade returned to levels last seen before the global financial crisis.
U.S. exports grew 4.6 percent in March to $172.7 billion, surpassing the record set in July 2008 before world trade took a sharp downturn. The March export rise was the biggest month-to-month gain in 17 years, the Commerce Department said in a report on Wednesday.
Commodity price margins: art, science or politics?
NEW YORK, May 12 (Reuters) - Recent nerve-shattering hikes in the amount of money exchanges require to trade commodities have stoked concerns over an often overlooked cornerstone of managing risk in futures markets: setting effective margins.
The CME , which operates the world's leading energy, grain and precious metal markets, portrayed a series of five increases in silver margins, and this week's 25 percent rise in escrow requirements for oil, as prudent responses to unusual volatility as prices surged to historic levels, then swooned.
India's April vegoil imports seen up as local supply dips
NEW DELHI, May 11 (Reuters) - India's vegetable oil imports may have risen by 15.5 percent in April because of lower local supplies after the end of the rapeseed harvest season, a Reuters survey showed on Wednesday, signalling the first rise in overseas purchases since December.
The rising trend is expected to continue next month, supporting global vegetable oil prices which have risen this year along with crude as they can be used as alternatives in the energy sector.
Corn at 6-week low on improved supply outlook, wheat dips
SINGAPORE, May 12 (Reuters) - Chicago corn futures lost more ground falling to a six-week low, while wheat slid half a percent to its lowest in almost a week as grains remained under pressure a day after a U.S. government report eased concerns over tight supplies.
"USDA was a contributing factor to the very large selloff that we saw in agricultural markets," said Luke Mathews, an agricultural commodities strategist at Commonwealth Bank of Australia. "It was a more bearish report than what the market was expecting with respect to corn in particular."
Kingsman nearly doubles 2011/12 global sugar surplus estimate
SINGAPORE, May 12 (Reuters) - Global sugar surplus is expected to surge to 10.575 million tonnes in the 2011/12 crop year, almost double an earlier estimate of 5.607 million tonnes, the Kingsman consultancy said on Thursday.
Kingsman also lifted its global output estimate, but lowered its consumption forecast for 2011/12.
China soy oil imports to rise from June, more Argentina imports-CNGOIC
BEIJING, May 12 (Reuters) - China's soy oil imports from June to September are likely to reach 600,000 tonnes, sharply up from about 50,000 tonnes expected for May, said an official think tank, the China National Grain and Oils Information Center (CNGOIC).
The center, citing market talk, said that China may sign a deal to import between 300,000 to 400,000 tonnes of soy oil from Argentina, the world's largest exporter.
U.S. farm exports hit $75 bln in first half of FY11
WASHINGTON, May 11 (Reuters) - U.S. farm exports reached an all-time high of $75 billion during the first half of fiscal 2011, said the Agriculture Department on Wednesday.
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said sales were on track for the record $135.5 billion in exports forecast for this year.
Sugar output in Brazil Parana down 26 pct by May 1
SAO PAULO, Brazil, May 11 (Reuters) - Early sugar output in Brazil's Parana was 26 percent below a year ago as of May 1 after rains hindered cane harvesting in the No. 4 producer state, local milling association Alcopar said on Wednesday.
Mills in Parana produced 182,000 tonnes of sugar, the equivalent of 5.27 percent of its total expected output in 2011/12 (April-March).
Brazil's cocoa mid crop gets started in Bahia
SAO PAULO, May 11 (Reuters) - Brazil's mid-crop harvest has begun in the main cocoa producing state of Bahia, cocoa analyst Thomas Hartmann said, confounding earlier predictions that growers would have to wait until mid-June to start picking.
Deliveries in the first week of the mid crop, and of the new season which began on May 1, totaled 27,136 60-kg bags, a typical quantity for the time of year, Hartmann said.
Copper falls under weight of China slowdown fears
NEW YORK/LONDON, May 11 (Reuters) - Copper crumbled to its lowest since December on Wednesday, as signs of a growth slowdown in China signaled sustained softness in demand from the world's largest metals consumer.
"I think the time to be long has passed. I am not sure the time to be short is upon us. I think the time for copper is to do nothing, just like the Chinese monetary authorities will be doing."
Zambia copper output up 4.1 pct yr/yr
LUSAKA, May 11 (Reuters) - Copper output in Zambia, Africa's top producer of the metal, rose by 4.1 percent in the first quarter of 2011 and is expected to rise higher as new projects start production, the central bank said on Wednesday.
January to March copper output rose to 204,597 tonnes in the first quarter of 2011 from 196,466 tonnes, the central bank said, while exports increased to 200,037 tonnes from 198,247 tonnes in the same period last year.
Silver, gold rebound after sell-off; dollar caps gains
SINGAPORE, May 12 (Reuters) - Spot silver rebounded as much as 2.3 percent and gold edged up after losses in the previous session, supported by light buying in Asia, while a firm dollar weighed on market sentiment.
"People are still worried about commodities -- we have seen some short-covering, some buying on dips today, but the buying is not substantial," said Dick Poon, manager of precious metals at Heraeus in Hong Kong.
Eastern Platinum posts Q1 loss; workers halt flagship mine
May 12 (Reuters) - Eastern Platinum Ltd posted a quarterly loss on lower output and the Canadian company said its flagship Crocodile River Mine project in South Africa was damaged following a wage dispute with the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM).
After Eastern's revised wage offer was rejected last week by the union, about 180 workers occupied the Zandfontein and Maroelabult mines and damaged facilities.
US ethanol production down, corn usage lags outlook
KANSAS CITY, May 11 (Reuters) - U.S. ethanol production fell again in the latest week, the government said on Wednesday, continuing a downward trend.
Ethanol output totaled 862,000 barrels per day (bpd) for the week ended May 6, down 13,000 bpd from the prior week, the Energy Information Administration said.
Indonesia's 2010/11 coffee output seen down 15-20 pct
JAKARTA, May 11 (Reuters) - Indonesia's coffee output may fall by 15-20 percent in the 2010/11 (Oct/Sept) crop year to as low as 520,000 tonnes as rains damage coffee cherries, the Indonesian Coffee Exporters Association said on Wednesday.
The estimate was similar to a forecast by the International Coffee Organization in April that output from the world's second biggest producer of robusta would fall by 25.3 percent to 8.5 million bags of 60-kg each, or 510,000 tonnes.
Indonesia 2011 coal output seen at 340 mln T - industry
JAKARTA, May 11 (Reuters) - Increased coal output from small-scale Indonesian miners will help offset wet weather and boost output by 17 percent this year in the world's largest exporter of thermal coal, the Indonesian Coal Society said on Wednesday.
Indonesia is expected to produce 340 million tonnes of coal, from around 290 million tonnes last year, Singgih Widagdo, the director of the industry group, told Reuters.
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