GLOBAL MARKETS-Asian stocks rebound but Europe fears still linger
SINGAPORE, Sept 7 (Reuters) - Asian stocks rebounded as investors hunted for bargains after the latest market slide, while the euro edged up against the dollar as traders covered some bets
"The stock market is rebounding after steep declines in recent days, but the situation has not changed and volatility remains high," said Korea Investment Trust Management fund manager Kim Young-il.
GRAINS-Corn, soy rise as US crops deteriorate; wheat firm
SINGAPORE, Sept 7 (Reuters) - Chicago corn and soybean futures rose , supported by deteriorating condition of the U.S. crops which is threatening to further tighten global supplies.
"I think the crop progress report is supporting prices as it has shown that the condition of U.S. crops is worsening," said Ker Chung Yang, an analyst at Phillip Futures in Singapore.
N Zealand 2012 cattle slaughter seen flat -attache
WASHINGTON, Sept 6 (Reuters) - Following are selected highlights from a report issued by a U.S. Department of Agriculture attache in New Zealand:
"The New Zealand slaughter number for 2012 is forecast at 3.9 million head, virtually unchanged from the 2011 estimate, and about 2 percent lower than the 2010 slaughter estimate. Total beef production in 2012 is forecast at 612,000 tonnes, up marginally from the estimated 610,000 tonnes produced in 2011, and down about 5 percent from the estimated 643,000 tonnes produced in 2010.
U.S. Gulf grain exports resume after Lee stoppage
CHICAGO, Sept 6 (Reuters) - Grain shipping at the U.S. Gulf Coast near New Orleans resumed on Monday following a three-day suspension as Tropical Storm Lee came ashore near the top U.S. grain export corridor, industry sources said on Tuesday.
Forecasts for heavy rain and likely flooding prompted grain export terminals along the Mississippi River to shutter operations ahead of the storm.
Brazil 2011/12 key cane region sugar exports seen at 21.1 MLN T
NEW DELHI, Sept 6 (Reuters) - Brazil's 2011/12 sugar exports from its center-south region are likely to be 21.1 million tonnes, analyst Datagro said on Tuesday, down from its Aug. 9 forecast of 22.35 million tonnes as it also cut its output estimate for the key sugar area.
Mounting worries over lower output in Brazil and China helped benchmark New York prices scale a six-month high at 31.85 cents per lb on Aug. 24 and October raw sugar futures on ICE still remain within sight of that milestone.
Brent rises above $113 on lower U.S. crude stocks forecast
SINGAPORE, Sept 7 (Reuters) - Brent crude rose above $113 a barrel for the second consecutive day on expectations of lower U.S. crude stockpiles after a storm disrupted production in the Gulf of Mexico.
"The disruption to Gulf production is supporting prices, and with storms coming more often to the U.S., it could be a bullish factor until the end of hurricane season," said Tetsu Emori, a fund manager at Astramax Co. Ltd. in Tokyo.
Mexico's largest oil refinery halted due to outage
MEXICO CITY, Sept 6 (Reuters) - Mexico's largest oil refinery shut down on Tuesday after a power outage but the state oil monopoly Pemex said it expects operations to resume by the end of the day.
The outage occurred at the 330,000 barrel-per-day capacity Salinas Cruz refinery in the southern state of Oaxaca forcing the company to shut down 26 processing plants for safety reasons, Pemex said in a statement.
Two reasons why Asia's still thirsty for crude: Clyde Russell
--Clyde Russell is a Reuters market analyst. The views expressed are his own.--
SINGAPORE, Sept 6 (Reuters) - Two seemingly unrelated bits of news on Monday show why there is hope that Asia's oil demand remains robust even as the global economic outlook darkens.
Firstly, Saudi Aramco saw fit to raise the premiums it will charge refiners in Asia for crude supplies for October, a sign the world's biggest oil exporter isn't too worried about slowing demand.
METALS-LME copper steady as looming strikes support
JAKARTA, Sept 7 (Reuters) - Copper prices rose almost 1 percent to snap a three-day slide, as a series of labour disputes threatened output and helped offset persistent worries about the health of the global economy.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange gained 0.6 percent to $ 8,982 a tonne by 0155 GMT, after falling in the previous session and closing 0.3 percent lower.
China seeks Japan tech in rare earth deals -media
TOKYO, Sept 7 (Reuters) - China told Japanese business leaders that it hoped their companies would bring technology to develop rare-earth products to China, while standing by its controversial decision to limit the metals' exports, Japanese media reported.
China produces more than 95 percent of the world's rare earth metals and its efforts to bring the sector under greater control, citing resource depletion and environmental degradation, have alarmed its overseas customers.
China nickel ore imports to slow in H2 vs H1 - Jinchuan exec
SHANGHAI, Sept 7 (Reuters) - China's nickel ore imports are expected to slow in the second half compared with the first, an executive at the country's top nickel producer Jinchuan Group told Reuters on Wednesday.
Wu Jun, Vice President of Jinchuan Group Ltd, did not elaborate.
China's 2011 steel output seen at 706 mln T - CISA
SHANGHAI, Sept 7 (Reuters) - Steel output in the world's top steel producer China is likely to hit a fresh record in excess of 700 million tonnes this year based on first-half production, a senior official with the China Iron & Steel Association (CISA) said on Wednesday.
"Based on steel production in the first half, China's steel output may reach 706 million tonnes and likely 710 million tonnes this year, but steel output growth is set to slow," Wang Xiaoqi, vice chairman of the China Iron & Steel Association, told an industry conference in Shanghai.
EU stockpiles rare earths to reduce reliance on China
BRUSSELS, Sept 6 (Reuters) - The European Union is stockpiling rare earth minerals, vital for many high-technology and defence industries, to reduce its dependence on dominant producer China, a spokesman for the EU industry commissioner said on Tuesday. "We are stockpiling, to better profit from the material that we have in the EU," said Andrea Maresi, press officer for EU Industry Commissioner Antonio Tajani, adding: "We are trying to improve our sourcing and reduce our dependence on China."
Brazil vows trade defense, targets Chinese steel
BRASILIA, Sept 6 (Reuters) - Brazil vowed on Tuesday to defend its domestic industry against unfair competition and slapped import tariffs on select Chinese steel products.
It is the latest in a series of measures to defend struggling domestic manufacturers and help shield Latin America's largest economy from the fallout of global financial turmoil.
China halts rare earth production at three mines
BEIJING, Sept 6 (Reuters) - China will halt production of rare earths at three major mines, state media reported on Tuesday, a move which could tighten supply in China, the top exporter of the valuable minerals.
Li Guoqing, the director of the mining management bureau of Ganzhou city in the eastern Jiangxi province, said on Monday that three of eight major rare earth producing counties would stop production by year-end, China's official English-language newspaper said.
PRECIOUS-Spot gold tumbles 2 pct on technical selling
SINGAPORE, Sept 7 (Reuters) - Spot gold dropped 2 percent abruptly to as low as $1,826, nearly $100 off the all-time high above $1,920 hit in the previous session, tracking heavy losses on U.S. gold futures on technical selling, said traders.
"It was intra-day technical stops," said a Sydney-based trader. "It doesn't reflect any changes in fundamentals."
Swiss franc peg may unleash gold rally to $2,000/oz
LONDON, Sept 6 (Reuters) - Switzerland's decision to peg the erstwhile safe-haven franc to the euro may finally give gold bugs the chance to see prices hit the once-unimaginable $2,000 an ounce mark, as the metal holds on track for its strongest annual rally in three decades.
The Swiss National Bank shocked global markets on Tuesday by saying it would buy unlimited quantities of foreign currencies to prevent the franc from rising above 1.20 Swiss francs to the euro , as it fights to contain the meteoric rise of its currency that threatens its exports and economy.
China looks to save struggling shipping sector at any cost
SINGAPORE, Sept 6 (Reuters) - China's campaign to protect its maritime industry during a severe downturn will become more costly for foreign companies as Beijing grabs a bigger slice of the profits for shipping iron ore, coal and grains to the world's second largest economy.
China's shipping sector -- led by state-owned COSCO Group -- has become one of the world's most influential with its fleet more than doubling over the last decade, matching the country's appetite for commodities and raw materials.
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