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Gold/Mining/Energy : Gold Price Monitor -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Alex who wrote (22956)	11/14/1998 2:15:00 PM
From: Giraffe	Respond to of 116764

Market reacts to US Iraq tension By Caroline Fossey Markets reacted to the growing tension between the US and Iraq after Saddam Hussein's decision to halt UN arms inspections. The oil price, which had fallen on Monday after the International Energy Agency lowered its forecast for demand, rose throughout the week. By Friday, a barrel of December Brent blend was $12.73 in late trading on London's International Petroleum Exchange. This was 83 cents up on its close on Monday when the IEA said demand would rise by 550,000 barrels a day (bpd) this year and by 400,000 bpd next year. This compares with 2m bpd in each of the past two years. However, the price later fell to $12.26 as Iraqi president Saddam Hussein said he would respond positively to any initiative that met his country's legitimate demands. On the London Metal Exchange, prices slipped at the beginning of the week as profit taking from the recent rally continued and caution about world economic growth prospects took hold. The LME announced on Tuesday it would modernise its nickel contract by allowing, from January 4 2000, full plate cathodes to be deliverable, as well as the present cut cathode, pellets and briquettes. Copper for delivery in three months fell 22 cents on Tuesday to $1,600 a tonne. One analyst warned that it might fall to the 11½-year low of $1,575 seen recently if the dollar continued to pick up against the yen. By the end of the week, it was down at $1,590 in late trading. Gold failed to respond strongly to the military build-up. It rose gradually throughout the week from Monday's closing price of $292.70 to close at $296.80 a troy ounce on Friday. Dealers thought the rally was unlikely to go much further, although Hanspeter Hausheer, analyst at SBC Warburg Dillon Read, said if the US and its allies attacked Iraq the price might move up again. Cocoa futures weakened on Monday on the London International Financial Futures and Options Exchange and continued their slide. The December contract reached its lowest level of £971 a tonne on Thursday, but closed at £975 yesterday. Financial Times