GLOBAL MARKETS-European debt woes prompt year-end flight from risk
SINGAPORE, Dec 15 (Reuters) - Asian shares retreated and the euro and commodities nursed stinging losses on Thursday after fears that Europe's debt crisis is still worsening prompted investors to dump riskier assets and huddle in the safety of the dollar and Treasuries.
The market view that a European Union summit last week had failed to produce a solution to the crisis was reinforced when Italy was forced to pay an eye-watering 6.47 percent on 5-year bonds on Wednesday, a record borrowing cost for the euro era.
COMMODITIES-Markets crash amid technical selling, Europe worry
NEW YORK, Dec 14 (Reuters) - Commodities plunged across the board on Wednesday, with gold all but losing its safe-haven appeal, as technical selling pressure added to investors' wearing patience over the European debt crisis.
"It's almost like panic atmosphere that we were dealing with," said Bill O'Neill, partner at commodities investment firm LOGIC Advisors and a regular commentator on gold.
Oil drops more than 4 pct as commodities plunge
NEW YORK, Dec 14 (Reuters) - Oil tumbled more than 4 percent on Wednesday, the biggest drop in over two months as a commodities selloff led to breaches of key technical support.
"That has to do with some real fear about not only slowing global growth, but also default," said Addison Armstrong, director of market research for Tradition Energy in Stamford, Connecticut.
Japan burns 200,000 bpd more crude for power in Oct
TOKYO, Nov 14 (Reuters) - Japan's utilities burned 200,000 barrels per day (bpd) more crude and 136,000 bpd more low-sulphur fuel oil in October than a year earlier to compensate for the loss of nuclear power capacity after the March quake, industry data showed on Monday.
Only 11 of the country's 54 nuclear reactors are operating, forcing the world's third-largest importer of oil and top importer of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to use even more of those fuels to generate power to plug the nuclear shortfall.
NYMEX-Natural gas hits 27-mth low, ends down 4 pct
NEW YORK, Dec 14 (Reuters) - Record high supplies and a slow start to the heating season drove front-month U.S. natural gas futures to their lowest close in more than two years on Wednesday.
"Storage is still at record highs for this time, and I don't see any (cold) weather ahead. It's going to be tough to get rid of all the storage gas," a Houston trader said.
Euro Coal-Prices dip again with oil, euro
LONDON, Dec 14 (Reuters) - Physical prompt coal prices slipped again by around 50-75 cents on Wednesday in line with weaker oil, the euro and equities and in the absence of fresh spot trade.
"The euro's down, oil and equities are down and there doesn't seem to be any real need to do business," one European trader said.
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