Gold, Copper End Friday with Gains

Gold prices ticked up by the end of Friday’s trading as concerns about Greece drove investors to safe assets. The deadline for the repayment of the country’s debt is set to June 30, but so far there are no indications that the indebted country has come close to an agreement with its international creditors. The CFTC Commitment of Traders report showed that hedge funds increased their long position on the metal this week. August futures for delivery of bullion edged up by 0.16 percent to $1,173.70 per troy ounce as on COMEX today. Copper futures rallied as well on hopes for stimulus in China. Lately, the world’s biggest consumer of the metal had some troubles in sustaining its impressive economic growth, prompting Chinese government to take steps to bolster the economy. September futures for delivery of copper climbed 0.82 percent to $2.641 per pound today. Meanwhile, wheat and other grains extended their rally. Weather in the United States was adverse to the crops, promising smaller supply. This is a bullish factor for the agricultural commodities. September corn surged 2.55 percent to $3.9250 per bushel on CBOT today. November contract for soybeans rallied 0.84 percent to $9.86 per bushel while futures for delivery of wheat in September demonstrated a whooping gain of 5.58 percent to $5.68 per bushel.

Commodity Gold & Gold ETFs Sales Down

Gold Sales Drop 10% on Weak Market Sentiment

Gold sales have dipped 10% in the past one month, hit by muted market sentiment and a slowdown in rural demand. Premiums on the yellow metal too have disappeared in the Mumbai market and it is available at a discount of $10 per ounce in the grey market,  people familiar with the trade. "The market is slower than expected. While delay in monsoon is one of the major reasons for this slowdown, the overall sentiment is also very dull which is affecting demand. The price of gold has almost stabilized over the past six months and is hovering around Rs 26500-Rs 27000 per 10 gm. Typically, if prices stabilize, consumers tend to buy.

Natural Gas Declines on Friday trading session

Prices for crude oil dropped on friday for the second day due to concerns about oversupply on the market. Saudi Arabia, the leading producer from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, warned that it may increase its output in the coming months. Prospects for even more supply on the already over saturated market overshadowed the steady decline of the number of US oil rigs. Prices were rising during the current trading week, but the rally has halted on Thursday. Futures for delivery of WTI crude oil in July dropped 1.25 percent to $60.01 per barrel as of 20:58 GMT on NYMEX today. Contract for Brent crude lost 2.12 percent to $63.73 per barrel on ICE.Futures for natural gas were in decline too during the Friday’s trading session. Forecasts of mild weather in the United States suggest limited usage of the commodity. Released yesterday, the report from the Energy Information Administration showed an increase of US stockpiles of gas by 111 billion cubic feet, slightly less than analysts had anticipated. July natural gas declined 2.48 percent to $2.76 per million British thermal units on NYMEX today.

Commodities Under Selling Pressure Ahead of Weekend

Commodities were under selling pressure today after the US inflation data and that were followed by a strong rally of the dollar. The sell-off hit all the markets, be it metal, energy of agricultural.The Consumer Price Index rose 0.1 percent in April, a bit slower than the 0.2 percent growth in the previous month. Yet excluding the volatile components like food and energy, the indicator rose 0.3 percent, surpassing the March’s increase. The mixed data clouded the outlook for timing of the potential interest rate hike from the Fed.

Daily Updates On Gold

Gold settled down -0.65% at 27108 as investors continuing to mull over the Federal Reserve's minutes for its April meeting, amid a slew of disappointing economic data from the U.S. and Europe. Gold prices were under pressure after failing to get any lift from yesterday's dovish Fed minutes.Gold trading range for the day is 26943-27401.

Daily Updates on COPPER

Commercial traders in the copper market have been extremely active through the first half of 2015. It was obvious by the record net long position they set in January that they had big expectations for global growth and the corresponding demand for copper to continue into the summer. However, a growing stream of soft economic data which led to dovish comments by the Federal Reserve Board which led to a dramatic shift in commercial trader sentiment just as the market was approaching solid resistance is now quickly sending this market downward towards its seasonal lows.