Copper Rallies, Gold Gains

Ivaylo
27 Mar, 2007
New York City

Copper futures hit their highest level of the year on Monday, boosted by high demand from China and short-covering. The May contract fetched a higher price than July, a condition generally seen as a sign of tight supplies. Gold and silver also advanced. In Nymex energy trading, crude oil futures climbed to a three-month high. Arabica coffee futures reached three-week highs, while futures on raw sugar declined.

[R]5:00AM Copper reached a high Monday, gold and silver advanced.[/R]
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, the most-active May copper contract gained 6.95 cents to end at $3.1385 per pound. April gold climbed $6.60 to settle at $663.90 an ounce on the Nymex, while May silver advanced 18.3 cents to close at $13.41 an ounce. April platinum rose $3.10 to end at $1,236.50 an ounce, but June palladium ended 50 cents lower at $359 an ounce.

The May crude oil contract surged as high as $63.30 a barrel before ending 63 cents higher at $62.91 a barrel. April gasoline futures soared 6.94 cents to $2.0677 a gallon after hitting an intraday high of $2.07 a gallon. April heating oil gained 6.5 cents to $1.7761 a gallon, while natural gas futures for April delivery settled 1.5 cents lower at $7.254 a million British thermal units.

On the New York Board of Trade, Arabica coffee futures hit three-week highs. The May contracts ended up a penny at $1.1435 a pound, while July futures finished a cent higher at $1.1715 a pound. The May raw sugar contract closed 0.20 cent lower at 10.00 cents a pound, while July futures settled down at 10.05 cents a pound. In other trading, most-active May cocoa added $6 to settle at $1,926 a metric ton.