Oil hits $100 as 2008 starts with investment binge
Friday, 4 January 2008
NEW YORK, Jan 3 (Reuters): Crude oil surged to $100 a barrel for the first time yesterday, and gold bullion broke above its 1980 high as the first taste of investor sentiment suggested commodities were the flavor of the new year.
The Reuters/Jefferies CRB index of 19 commodity futures rose 2.3 per cent to a record 366.86 on the first trading day of 2008. That exceeded the previous high from May 2006, building on strong gains in the fourth quarter of 2007, which gave investors in commodities by far the largest annual returns of any asset class.
Spurred on by violence in OPEC members Nigeria and Nigeria, February crude futures at the New York Mercantile Exchange touched the $100 mark at midday, eclipsing the previous record of $99.29 a barrel hit Nov. 21, before retreating to end at $99.62, up $3.64.
Spot gold hit a record $861.10 an ounce, boosted as the surge in crude oil sparked fears of inflation and a possible recession in the United States.
It surpassed its previous peak of $850, set in January 1980, and was quoted in New York at $855.70/$856.50, against Monday's late quote of $832.60/$833.40 in New York.
Gold futures for February delivery settled up $22, or 2.6 per cent, at $860 an ounce on the COMEX metals division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, reaching a contract high at $864.90. The record high for benchmark futures was $875 an ounce.
Chicago Board of Trade soybeans reached a 34-year high and wheat rose its daily 30-cent limit.
March corn rose 7 cents to $4.62-1/2 per bushel. Buying escalated when the contract broke above technical resistance at $4.60. It set a new 11-year high of $4.69-1/2 per bushel for a spot month, but was still below the record $5.54-1/2 that was set in July 1996.
The demand for corn from the livestock, biofuels and export sectors remains brisk and US export sources said late Monday they expected strong export demand for both US corn and wheat in 2008.
The Reuters/Jefferies CRB index of 19 commodity futures rose 2.3 per cent to a record 366.86 on the first trading day of 2008. That exceeded the previous high from May 2006, building on strong gains in the fourth quarter of 2007, which gave investors in commodities by far the largest annual returns of any asset class.
Spurred on by violence in OPEC members Nigeria and Nigeria, February crude futures at the New York Mercantile Exchange touched the $100 mark at midday, eclipsing the previous record of $99.29 a barrel hit Nov. 21, before retreating to end at $99.62, up $3.64.
Spot gold hit a record $861.10 an ounce, boosted as the surge in crude oil sparked fears of inflation and a possible recession in the United States.
It surpassed its previous peak of $850, set in January 1980, and was quoted in New York at $855.70/$856.50, against Monday's late quote of $832.60/$833.40 in New York.
Gold futures for February delivery settled up $22, or 2.6 per cent, at $860 an ounce on the COMEX metals division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, reaching a contract high at $864.90. The record high for benchmark futures was $875 an ounce.
Chicago Board of Trade soybeans reached a 34-year high and wheat rose its daily 30-cent limit.
March corn rose 7 cents to $4.62-1/2 per bushel. Buying escalated when the contract broke above technical resistance at $4.60. It set a new 11-year high of $4.69-1/2 per bushel for a spot month, but was still below the record $5.54-1/2 that was set in July 1996.
The demand for corn from the livestock, biofuels and export sectors remains brisk and US export sources said late Monday they expected strong export demand for both US corn and wheat in 2008.