20110608 1142 Global Commodities Related News.

Corn (Source: CME)
US corn futures finish higher in a turnaround from yesterday's sharp losses. Sales of 822,960 metric tons to Mexico help support prices, particularly in deferred contracts as the grain was for delivery in 2011-12 and 2012-13 marketing years. The long-range sales send a signal that grain users are nervous supplies will stay tight, analysts say. "They're trying to secure inventory," says Larry Glenn, broker and analyst at Frontier Ag. CBOT July corn rises 4 1/2c to $7.36 1/2 a bushel; December corn climbs 9 1/2c to $6.76 1/2.

Wheat (Source: CME)
US wheat futures finish solidly lower, with the nearby MGEX contract suffering the heaviest losses in a setback from strong recent gains. MGEX spring wheat tumbles as traders take profits after the contract reaches a nearly 3-year high. The accelerating winter-wheat harvest adds pressure to CBOT and KCBT wheat as fresh supplies come in from the fields. In Western Europe, crop concerns ease as rains fall in dry areas. CBOT July wheat falls 10 1/4c to $7.33 3/4 a bushel while KCBT July loses 15 1/2c to $8.74 1/2 and MGE July sinks 57 1/4c to $9.84 3/4.

Rice (Source: CME)
US rice futures edge higher as the market continues to recover from a 2-week low reached Friday. The recent slide was seen as overdone due to ongoing crop concerns. Analysts say farmers likely planted fewer acres than they intended due to wet weather in the South. Plantings were already projected to drop significantly from last year due to weak prices. CBOT July rice rises 2 1/2c to $14.77/hundredweight.

Corn Futures Costlier Than Wheat in Chicago for the First Time Since 1984 (Source: Bloomberg)
Corn futures are more expensive than wheat futures on the Chicago Board of Trade for the first time since 1984, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Corn for July delivery, the most active contract, traded at $7.43 a bushel at 7:25 a.m. in Singapore while wheat for delivery in the same month traded at $7.3875 a bushel.

USDA seen lowering US corn stocks; yields eyed
CHICAGO, June 6 (Reuters) - Near-record high corn prices have done little to slow demand for the golden grain from U.S. livestock feeders and ethanol producers -- a factor that should prompt the U.S. Agriculture Department to lower its forecast of U.S. old-crop corn inventories this week, analysts said.
USDA has projected U.S. corn ending stocks for the "old crop" 2010/11 marketing year at 730 million bushels, a 15-year low. The tightness has kept Chicago Board of Trade corn futures near an all-time high, set in April, of $7.83-3/4 a bushel.

USDA to cut U.S. winter wheat view on dry weather
CHICAGO, June 6 (Reuters) - Drought conditions in the southern U.S. Plains were expected to cause the U.S. Agriculture Department to lower its forecast for 2011 U.S. winter wheat production by 2.2 percent, analysts and traders said.
USDA, which has already pegged this year's winter wheat crop as the smallest in five years, will release its latest outlook on U.S. wheat production, as well as supply and demand estimates, on Thursday.

US corn planting seen at 93 pct
CHICAGO, June 6 (Reuters) - Some dry and hot weather in the eastern Corn Belt likely allowed farmers to make progress on their much-delayed corn planting in the past week as they scramble to seed a final 13 million acres, analysts said.
The U.S. Agriculture Department's weekly crop progress report on Monday afternoon is expected to show that farmers had planted 93 percent of their anticipated corn acreage as of June 5, based on an average of estimates given by 10 analysts.

Corn planting seen 93 pct done, soybeans 70 pct
CHICAGO, June 6 (Reuters) - Some dry and hot weather in the eastern Corn Belt likely allowed farmers there to make progress on their much-delayed corn planting in the past week, analysts said.
The U.S. Agriculture Department's weekly crop progress report on Monday afternoon is expected to show that farmers had planted 93 percent of their anticipated corn acreage as of June 5, based on an average of estimates given by 10 analysts.

U.S. wheat, soy tick up after selloff; corn steady
SINGAPORE, June 7 (Reuters) - U.S. wheat edged higher recovering from a three-week low, while corn was little changed as bargain-hunters and end-users stepped in following last session's steep losses, triggered by improved crop weather.  "Whenever there is price pull-back, it attracts some bargain hunting from countries that are suffering from tight supplies of grains," said Ker Chung Yang, analyst at Phillip Futures in Singapore.

Australia farm sector set for solid year: NAB
SYDNEY, June 7 (Reuters) - Australia's farm exports are likely to rise nearly 5 percent in fiscal 2011/12, boosted by favourable weather and farmers planting more crop in response to high global prices, National Australia Bank Ltd  said in a report on Tuesday.
NAB said producers were globally increasing production in response to high prices but weather risks in some key northern hemisphere exporting countries pose a threat to yields, while depleted stocks would continue to support prices.

FAO world food index likely to be steady for May
MILAN, June 7 (Reuters) - The United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) on Tuesday is to update its monthly Food Price Index, which measures price changes for a basket of cereals, oilseeds, dairy products, meat and sugar.
Developing countries must double food output from 2005-2007 levels, and developed countries should raise output 70 percent to feed the world population, which the United Nations estimates will grow from about 6.7 billion to more than 9 billion in 2050.

US spring wheat nears 3-year peak before closing lower
CHICAGO, June 6 (Reuters) - Industry sources discounted talk that the Canadian Wheat Board, which has an export monopoly on wheat from Western Canada, was caught in a market squeeze. The CWB declined to comment.
"Farmers haven't been able to plant wheat and now the late plantings will be vulnerable to heat damage. Canadian farmers also haven't been able to plant," said Brian Hoops, president of Midwest Market Solutions in Yankton, South Dakota, and Springfield, Missouri.

W.Canada planting 80 finished-Wheat Board
WINNIPEG, Manitoba, June 6 (Reuters) - Western Canada's farmers have planted 80 percent of their crops, behind normal progress, with parts of Saskatchewan and Manitoba likely to stay fallow this year due to wetness, a Canadian Wheat Board official said on Monday.
Normally, the region has seeded 93 percent of crops by this time.

U.S. wheat falls as rain boosts European crop prospects-trade
CHICAGO, June 6 (Reuters) - Analysts, on average, were expecting the USDA to lower its U.S. winter wheat forecast to 1.392 billion bushels from 1.424 billion, according to a Reuters poll. Hot and dry weather in the U.S. Plains this week will stress any late filling hard red winter wheat in southern Kansas but favorable conditions northward. Some progress is being made in planting corn and spring wheat in the northern U.S. Plains but it still appears some acreage will go unplanted.

Flooded Missouri River still open to barge traffic
CHICAGO, June 6 (Reuters) - The flood-swollen Missouri River remained open to commercial barge traffic on Monday, although shipping restrictions were in place due to high water near Bismarck, North Dakota, the U.S. Coast Guard said.
Historically low water levels on the river limit the amount of grain that can be loaded on barges and the cost of shipping shallow draft barges is often higher than rail, they said.

Food Prices Linger Near Record as Wheat Output to Trail Demand, UN Says (Source: Bloomberg)
Global wheat production will lag behind demand, helping to keep food prices high and volatile at least through next year, the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization said. Wheat output will rise 3.2 percent to 673.6 million metric tons in the season starting in July, trailing demand of 677 million tons, the FAO said in a report on its website today. Food prices stayed near record levels in May on higher meat and dairy costs. Food imports will rise 21 percent to a record $1.29 trillion this year, the FAO said separately.

Global Food 2011 Imports May Climb 21% to Record $1.29 Trillion, FAO Says (Source: Bloomberg)
Global food imports may rise 21 percent to a record $1.29 trillion this year, with “poorer” countries spending up to 30 percent more than last year, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations said.

World Food Prices To Stay High Into 2012 - FAO (Source: CME)
World food prices are likely to remain high well into next year as weather problems threaten grain harvests in key producers, putting pressure on already hard-pressed importing countries, according to a report by the United Nations' food body. The Food and Agriculture Organization's food index averaged 232 points in May, down a modest 1% from a revised estimate of 235 points in April, but still only six points off the record high hit in February, the FAO said in its monthly update. And in its biannual food report, the organization warned that even a forecast 3.5% rise in world cereal output to a record 2.3 billion metric tons in 2011 may not be enough to replenish scarce world stocks and calm the turbulence that has wracked world food markets this season. "The general situation for agricultural crops and food commodities is tight with world prices at stubbornly high levels, posing a threat to many low-income food deficit countries," said David Hallam, director of FAO's Markets and Trade Division.
International grain prices hit record peaks earlier this year after prolonged drought in Russia and Ukraine slashed output and took some of the world's cheapest grain out of the market, leaving buyers scrambling to secure supplies. Now analysts warn prices may soon revisit their peaks as severe drought across Europe and parts of the U.S. and excess rain in the northern U.S. and Canada threaten the 2011-12 crop in two of the world's key exporters against a backdrop of rising global demand. The FAO forecasts the world's stock-to-use ratio for coarse grains will fall to 13.9% in 2011-12 despite a forecast rise in production, down from 14.2% the season before. The stock-to-disappearance ratio in major exporting countries is expected to rise to 8.5% after the rapid pace of exports in 2010. "The global supply picture remains tight," said FAO grain analyst Abdolreza Abbassian.
Countries which rely on imports have been hit particularly hard by the rise in food prices this year and inflation has been blamed for sparking the wave of unrest which has swept the Arab world this year. The World Bank estimates 44 million people may have been pushed into poverty by the price increases and charities warn millions more face starvation if prices stay high. Many buyers are now pinning their hopes on the return of grain from the Black Sea after the Kremlin said exports will resume in July. FAO analyst Abdolreza Abbassian estimated Russian wheat exports will reach 5 million tons and total grain exports 11 million tons in the 2011-12 crop year. But he warned that indications the Kremlin may impose export duties, as Kiev has already done, could inhibit the flow of badly needed supplies onto the world market. The report comes ahead of a meeting by agriculture ministers from the group of 20 industrialized nations in France at the end of June.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy has made regulating food markets the priority of his leadership of the G20 this year but other agricultural powers, such as the U.S., have indicated they do not necessarily support France's push for a more unified take on food reserves. Speaking at a conference in London, French Agriculture Minister Bruno le Maire said he believes officials will be able to reach a consensus to improve transparency in world food markets and create a worldwide network of inventories to cushion any supply shocks in the future. "I think today we are not far from a consensus on this action plan," he told the conference. "Just as we need transparency in the oil sector we need transparency in the agriculture sector, especially grains."

EU To Bolster Vegetable Markets After E. Coli Outbreak (Source: CME)
European Union authorities are proposing to give vegetable farmers EU funds to destroy their products in an effort to bolster agriculture markets hard hit by the European E. coli outbreak, EU officials said. The origin of the outbreak, meanwhile, remains a mystery: German authorities said that they couldn't determine whether a sprout farm in northern Germany, the region at the center of the outbreak, was the source of the bacteria. The money sought by EU authorities would be used to destroy tomatoes, lettuce and cucumbers, and possibly peppers and zucchini. Some of these vegetables were mistakenly identified by German authorities in May as the origin of the E. coli outbreak, which has been linked to a particularly dangerous strain of the bacteria that has killed 23 people and sickened 2,200 others, mostly in northern Germany. Authorities subsequently ruled out those vegetables as the source, leaving farmers outraged and demanding compensation from EU governments.
The European Commission, the EU's executive arm, had proposed to spend EUR150 million on vegetable destruction. But EU governments told the commission at a meeting here that amount wasn't nearly enough to address the magnitude of losses suffered by farmers. Dutch Agriculture Minister Henk Bleker said the EU should spend EUR200 to EUR300 million on vegetable destruction. The EU farm commissioner, Dacian Ciolos, said he would propose a new plan, with more money, possibly as early as Wednesday. But he cautioned that there isn't much room in the EU budget, which has already been stretched thin because of the economic crisis. "It puts the commission in an awkward position," Ciolos said. "The commission proposal can't only take account of losses. We also have to look at the budget available." European vegetable consumption has fallen significantly in the past three weeks since the first cases were diagnosed in Germany. That has left the market with a glut of supply.
The commission's initial proposal would pay farmers 30% of the average market price over the past four years for their product to destroy it. Spain, which was first accused as the source of the contaminated vegetables, and some other countries are asking for farmers to be paid at 100% of the average market price. European health authorities are still struggling to discover the source of the outbreak. Regional German officials reported that testing on bean sprouts from a small organic farm in northern Germany still hasn't proven that it is the source of the E. coli infections.

IGC: World Wheat Production Short Of Demand On Weather Problems (Source: CME)
World wheat production is now expected to fall short of demand for a second consecutive season as weather problems slash hopes for crops in key producers Europe and the U.S., the International Grains Council said. In a special report to coincide with the intergovernmental organization's annual conference, the IGC reduced its forecast for world wheat production to 663 million metric tons, leaving a deficit of four million tons against consumption of 667 million tons. Much of the downgrade was down to waning hopes for output from France, Western Europe's largest producer, where wheat production, including durhum, is expected to total only 35 million tons, four million tons lower than earlier predictions.
And in corn markets too supplies are expected to remain tight, as output is expected to hit only 843 million tons, down from a previous forecast of 848 million tons, against consumption of 850 million tons thanks to delays to plantings in the world's biggest exporter, the U.S. "The current higher level of grain prices reflect an increasingly tight demand and supply situation," IGC executive director Etsuo Kitahara told the conference. "We expect a further reduction in carryover stocks in 2011-12." The situation is particularly tight in exporting countries, where rapid sales last year in the wake of Russia's ban on grain exports have drained inventories. The IGC forecast that world grain stocks will fall to their lowest level in 15 years at 105 million tons, down 6 million tons from its May prediction.

South Africa To Export 3.5 Mln Tons Corn In 2011-2012 (Source: CME)
South African corn exports are likely to total 3.5 million metric tons in the 2011-12 crop year, the Commodity Derivatives Johannesburg Stock Exchange South Africa said. "We are seeing a lot of maize [corn] leaving South Africa now because of price levels, but plantings will need to be strong next year for the trend to continue," Rod Gravelet-Blondin, senior general manager at JSE Ltd., said at an international grain conference in London. Gravelet-Blondin said the current crop year has been characterized by unusual export deals out of South Africa, namely a total 400,000 tons of corn to South Korea and Mexico. Corn acreage in South Africa fell 13% to 2.372 million hectares this year, from 2.742 million hectares in 2010-11, as farmers turned away from corn after three excellent successive harvests left the country with a 4 million-ton surplus, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said in May.
South Africa's commercial corn crop is expected to fall 15% in 2011-12 to 10.883 million metric tons due to a fall in plantings, the USDA said.

India Food Minister Favors More Time To Export Wheat Products (Source: CME)
India's food ministry is in favor of giving traders more time for exports of around 500,000 metric tons of wheat products that were left unsold out of 650,000 tons permitted to ship abroad, Food Minister K.V. Thomas said. India allowed private traders to export wheat products for a limited period in 2009 and the program was extended in phases until March 31, 2011 after the industry failed to meet the target. Roller flour millers have now sought time until March 31, 2012 to ship the entire quantity. "We won't oppose [giving more time for] wheat product exports because we, in fact, encourage value-addition. So we may agree on wheat product exports, although we may not agree on grain exports," Thomas told Dow Jones Newswires. A ministerial panel will decide on the issue, he added, but didn't say when the panel will meet. Traders said a more-than-two-year ban until mid-2009 on wheat product exports resulted in clients shifting to other suppliers.
"India needs to have a long-term policy on wheat product exports and there should be no restriction on either the quantity or the period of exports," said Veena Sharma, secretary of the Roller Flour Mills Federation of India. She said maintaining a ban on wheat exports will not only help ensure steady local supplies, but also keep down prices that will give an edge to India's exports of value-added wheat products. Denmark, the Middle East, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Nepal and the Maldives are the main buyers of Indian wheat products such as semolina and wheat flour that are used to make bread and bakery items. India is expecting a record wheat output of 84.27 million tons this crop year through June, up from 80.8 million tons last year. Government officials say the final output may exceed the estimate by up to 2.0 million tons.
The country's food stocks swelled to nearly triple its buffer requirement of 59.13 million tons as of May 1, triggering speculation the government may consider limited grain exports to free up storage space. But, Thomas said his ministry isn't in favor of grain exports as the government intends to enact a law that will widen subsidized grain sales to the poor. Still, India allows limited shipments to honor diplomatic requests from some countries. India will export 250,000 tons of wheat to Afghanistan, out of which 100,000 tons have already been shipped, he said. It is also likely to ship to Bangladesh 300,000 tons of parboiled rice, approved in August 2010, within a month, he added.

Nestle Expects Commodity Price Volatility To Continue (Source: CME)
Nestle SA is facing unprecedented rises in raw material prices and expects the situation to continue for the next few years, its head of procurement said. Speculators, weather conditions and rising oil prices are ramping up the prices for cocoa, coffee and other ingredients the Swiss food company uses in its products, Kevin Petrie said. "In nominal terms we are seeing unprecedented rises in the price of commodities," Petrie told Nestle's annual investor seminar in Vevey. "We see tremendous volatility and headwinds." The world is in the middle of the fifth historical commodity boom cycle, he said, with economic growth in India and China driving the surge in commodity prices. The current boom began in 2004, and could continue until 2024, he said. "We have a few years of being in this boom cycle," Petrie said. In real terms, which are adjusted for the impact of inflation, prices were also up although the longer-term trend was downwards, he said.
Volatility had increased, with the average monthly price variation rising to 16.4% in 2006 to 2010, up from a 12.4% swing between 2000 and 2005, he said. Nestle is one of the biggest food raw materials buyers in the world, spending CHF60 billion ($71.5 billion) in 2010. The figure includes CHF22 billion on ingredients like dairy, coffee and sugar, and CHF8 billion on packaging. Prices are also going up because investment funds are increasingly buying commodities because of the better returns than equities, Petrie said. "At one point investment funds had 38% of the New York arabica futures market. They have no intention of taking delivery, but they are controlling almost 30% of arabica coffee," Petrie said. There was also the issue of political crises like the conflict in Ivory Coast, which reduced cocoa shipments earlier this year. Around 33% of the world's cocoa comes from Ivory Coast, with Nestle a major customer.
"Ivory Coast was a crisis for us, but we put together a team very rapidly to deal with it," Petrie said. "We knew that when the crisis came we would have enough cocoa and cocoa products to last us through 2011. But if the crisis had continued we would have had issues for 2012." Currency, rising oil prices and weather conditions such as heavy rainfall in Colombia which reduced arabica coffee exports were also factors. Biofuel also played a significant role, with increasing amounts of feedstock like corn and rapeseed oil being used for biofuel instead of food. Nestle has set up commodity research teams to identify trends, while the company uses futures contracts and hedging to lessen its exposure to price swings. "The tremendous volatility give us an opportunity to take positions and cover the risks," Petrie said.


Coffee, cocoa firm, tight supplies white sugar
LONDON, June 7 (Reuters) - ICE arabica coffee and cocoa futures edged higher in light volumes in early trade on Tuesday, while raw sugar firmed, underpinned by tight supplies of white sugar. ICE raw sugar futures edged up in light volumes, underpinned by tight availability of refined sugar, combined with new-crop loading delays at ports in Brazil after a slow start to the harvest.

Vietnam Coffee-June loading to dip, prices above London
HANOI, June 7 (Reuters) - Vietnam's coffee exports slowed this week on thin stocks and falling prices in London markets from recent peaks, and exports  this month could fall by up to a third from May following strong loading earlier this year, traders said on Tuesday.
June's coffee exports would drop to between 65,000 tonnes and 80,000 tonnes, or 1.08 million to 1.33 million bags, from 110,000 tonnes in estimated shipments last month, traders said.

Mexico sugar output up 5.16 mln tonnes to June 4
MEXICO CITY, June 6 (Reuters) - Mexico has so far produced 5.16 million tonnes of sugar in the 2010/11 season, 8.12 percent more than the previous harvest, the national cane workers union said on Monday.
Mexico's sugar harvest is expected to reach 5.25 million tonnes this year, above the previous two seasons when output dropped to its lowest levels in a decade due to bad weather.

Rains and sun boost hopes for Ivorian cocoa crop
ABIDJAN, June 6 (Reuters) - Ivory Coast's cocoa growing regions received abundant rainfall mixed with periods of sunshine last week, raising expectations of an abundant mid-crop in the world's top grower, farmers and analysts said on Monday.
Ivorian cocoa arrivals to port are already running more than 15 percent higher than last year despite the effects of a four-month power struggle that killed thousands and left the economy in ruins, according to exporters.

Ivorian cocoa arrivals seen 15 pct over yr-ago
ABIDJAN, June 6 (Reuters) - Ivory Coast cocoa output is running 15 percent over last year, exporters said on Monday, reinforcing hopes the West African country's recent post-election conflict spared its main industry.
Some 1,166,560 tonnes of beans arrived from Ivorian plantations to port by June 5 since the start of the season in October, up from 1,009,646 tonnes in the same period a year ago, according to a consensus estimate from exporters.

Oil Declines, Erasing Earlier Gains; OPEC May Raise Production Quota Today (Source: Bloomberg)
Oil traded little changed in New York today, erasing earlier gains. Crude for July delivery was down 14 cents, or 0.1 percent, at $98.95 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange at 12:10 p.m. Sydney time. Prices are up 37 percent the past year.

Oil Gains After U.S. Stockpiles Plunge; OPEC May Raise Output Quotas Today (Source: Bloomberg)
Oil climbed for a second day in New York after a report showed U.S. crude supplies declined the most since December and on speculation OPEC will increase production quotas, signaling global fuel demand will climb. Futures gained as much as 0.7 percent after the industry- funded American Petroleum Institute said crude stockpiles fell 5.5 million barrels to 366 million. OPEC will raise its output target at a meeting in Vienna today, according to a Gulf delegate with knowledge of the matter. The U.S. raised its forecast for global oil consumption for this year.

Top mining firms seeing lower profit margins – PwC
LONDON, June 7 (Reuters) - Profit margins for the world's top 40 mining companies are below the historical peaks of 2006 and 2007 as higher costs outweigh record commodity prices, PricewaterhouseCoopers said on Tuesday.
Revenues for the world's 40Fed officials say economic data disappointing
NEW YORK, June 6 (Reuters) - U.S. Federal Reserve officials on Monday said recent economic data has been disappointing, with one suggesting it could delay the Fed's exit from its extremely easy monetary policy.

Copper in London Gains for Fourth Day, Set for Longest Rally in Two Months (Source: Bloomberg)
Copper in London climbed for a fourth day, set for its longest rally since April, as ongoing supply disruptions and a weaker dollar offset concern about an economic slowdown. The metal for three-month delivery on the London Metal Exchange gained as much as 0.2 percent to $9,157.50 a metric ton at 8:05 a.m. Singapore time.

Gold Falls From Five-Week High as European-Debt Concerns Ease, Euro Gains (Source: Bloomberg)
Gold futures fell from a five-week high as European debt concerns eased, eroding the appeal of the precious metal as a haven.

Japan Q3 aluminium premium deal seen at $120/T -source
TOKYO, June 7 (Reuters) - The premium for primary aluminium shipments to Japan in the July-September quarter has been set at $120 per tonne for at least one deal, up from $113 for the current April-June quarter, an industry source directly involved in premium talks said on Tuesday.
"We have agreed to a premium of $120," said the source, noting that the amount covered by the deal accounted for about a third of the volume his company is negotiating on.

Key Chile mine struggles for 3rd day due to strike
SANTIAGO, June 6 (Reuters) - The world's fifth largest copper mine, Chile's El Teniente, worked at less than half of capacity on Monday as most workers stayed home for a third day to avoid violence by striking contractors, owner state giant Codelco said.
The mine slowed down operations late last week after temporary workers, on strike since May 25, threw stones at buses carrying workers to the mine. Police patrols escorted buses carrying a few hundred staff employees to the deposit on Sunday to work on a contingency plan that allows the 404,000 tonne-a-year mine to produce at 40 percent capacity.

More delay seen in iron ore exports from south India
NEW DELHI, June 6 (Reuters) - India's Karnataka state could start issuing iron ore shipment permits within 15 days, two month after an export ban was lifted, but traders said they did not expect overseas sales to pick up before September when monsoon traditionally ends.
The southern state, which accounts for about a quarter of supplies from India, was ordered on April 5 by a court to lift an export ban on iron ore imposed last year in a drive against illegal mining and to keep supplies for local steelmakers.

Lead seen rising as China battery clampdown fades
LONDON, June 6 (Reuters) - Supply constraints and solid demand will push lead prices higher despite prospects a current crackdown on polluting battery-makers in top consumer China will hit consumption there in the short term.
With a major mine in Australia shut indefinitely and alternatives to the lead-acid battery far off, analysts see prices ranging from $2,700 to $3,000 a tonne in the fourth quarter, above current levels.

METALS-Copper steady on recovery prospects, dollar
LONDON, June 7 (Reuters) - Copper steadied on Tuesday supported by a soft dollar and prospects of a demand pick-up into the second half but patchy U.S. economic data and perceptions of a slowdown in China checked its advance.
Benchmark copper  on the London Metal Exchange traded at $9,135 at 1001 GMT and unchanged having closed at $9,135 on Monday. The metal hit its highest in a month at $9,278.50 one a week ago, but has failed to gain any momentum.

PRECIOUS-Gold firms as dollar slides to one-month low
LONDON, June 7 (Reuters) - Gold prices firmed in Europe on Tuesday as the dollar retreated to a one-month low against a basket of currencies, hurt by warnings from a Chinese foreign exchange official of the risks of excessive dollar holdings.
Spot gold  was bid at $1,547.95 an ounce at 1006 GMT, against $1,543.05 late in New York on Monday. U.S. gold futures for August delivery  rose $1.90 an ounce to $1,549.10.