AP
Metals, Energy Futures Fall
Monday July 23, 4:39 pm ET
By Lauren Villagran, AP Business Writer
Metals, Energy Prices Slide After Week of Strong Gains As Investors Cash in Some Profits

NEW YORK (AP) -- Gold prices fell Monday in tandem with the rising U.S. dollar as some traders decided to cash in some of their profits from the metal's big advance last week.
Other commodities markets also backtracked as crude oil and gasoline prices fell and industrial metals weakened. Agriculture futures finished mixed.

Silver and platinum joined gold in its slide.

Tom Pawlicki, analyst with Man Financial Global Research in Chicago, attributed gold's decline to profit-taking after the metal's price rose above key resistance levels last week. When a commodity reaches a certain price level considered a key breaking point, it can trigger mass buying or selling of a commodity due to the widespread use of computer-programmed trading.

The drop follows a more than $17 jump in prices last week amid substantial declines in the U.S. dollar. Although the dollar notched a new low Monday in overnight trading against the euro, the U.S. currency bounced back, if slightly. The 13-nation euro bought a record $1.3846, briefly edging over last week's record $1.3843.

Gold prices tend to be sensitive to the dollar's direction, as investors shift funds to gold when the dollar weakens or return to the currency amid signs of strength.

August gold fell $3.20 an ounce to close at $681.50 on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while September silver slipped 7.3 cents to settle at $13.33 an ounce.

Overseas, industrial metals declined on the London Metal Exchange, with nickel dropping close to 5 percent and lead pulling back more than 3 percent after a week of strong price gains. Copper prices also dipped amid mostly bearish supply reports.

Nickel and copper stocks held by the LME -- considered a gauge of world supply and demand -- increased on Monday. Also, Barclays Capital reported that Chinese trade data showed month-over-month declines in imports of copper cathodes and nickel concentrates in June.

Meanwhile, news that a strike at one copper operation has ended helped offset word that worker protests would continue at another.

Workers at Xstrata PLC's CCR copper refinery in Montreal-East, Canada, voted to end a strike on Sunday after reaching a settlement with the company, Dow Jones Newswires reported. Dow Jones also reported that labor talks hadn't improved much between Chile's Codelco, contract workers and the contracting companies, and a strike appeared set to continue after 29 days of protest.

Nymex copper dipped 4.9 cents to close at $3.6565 a pound.

Elsewhere on the Nymex, energy prices receded as crude oil gave up some of last week's gains.

OPEC's research director Hasan Qabazard on Monday told Dow Jones Newswires he continues to believe oil is fairly valued between $60 and $65 a barrel. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries has recently voiced concerns that high oil prices may hurt world economic growth.

Adding to the price pressure, French oil producer Total SA said it would resume exports at a key Angolan oil facility.

Data from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission on Friday revealed a retreat in speculative bets on rising prices in crude oil and refined products, suggesting liquidation in that market may be at a beginning, said Pawlicki of Man Financial.

Light, sweet crude for September delivery fell 90 cents to close at $74.89 a barrel. August gasoline futures dropped 6.05 cents to settle at $2.1041 a gallon.

Natural gas futures shed 40.7 cents to settle at $6.039 on the Nymex, as mild temperatures have curtailed demand and kept stockpiles robust.

Meanwhile in Chicago, soybean futures stumbled and helped tug corn lower also.

"The general fundamental driving this is a perception of growing crop sizes of both corn and beans," said Jay Calhoun, broker with Chicago-based Walsh Trading Inc. Through much of the Corn Belt, "the severely dry areas have grown smaller with each passing (weather) system. The troubled portion of the crop has trended smaller over past 10 days or so."

Market analysts also generally expected to see healthy crop conditions in the U.S. Department of Agriculture's weekly report following after nearly ideal weather in the U.S. Corn Belt.

The USDA reported after the market close on Monday that 62 percent of the corn crop was in good or excellent condition in the week ended July 22, down 2 percentage points from the previous week. The report showed 61 percent of the soybean crop in similar standing, down 1 percent week over week.

Both crops were in better condition than at this point a year ago.

December corn fell 8 cents to close at $3.255 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade, while soybeans plunged 34.25 cents to end at $8.41 a bushel. Wheat prices rose 4 cents to $6.2025 a bushel.