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To: Alex who wrote (23346)	11/23/1998 9:22:00 PM
From: goldsnow	Respond to of 116752

"The fact that gold and silver could end higher in the face of the strong dollar and strong stock market suggests the fear of some year-end profit-taking, and mutual fund redemptions may undermine the recovery in the Dow Jones index,'' said Carlos Perez-Santalla, a COMEX floor trader with Hudson River Futures in New York. " Oil and grain prices slide, but gold ends up 05:33 p.m Nov 23, 1998 Eastern By Clive McKeef NEW YORK, Nov 23 (Reuters) - Crude oil, wheat, corn and soybean prices all ended lower on Monday, but gold prices defied the overall downtrend in commodity prices to close higher. ''Commodity prices have been tumbling over the past two weeks,'' said Bill O'Neill, director of commodity research at Merrill Lynch in New York. ''Industrial commodities have been a weak link, with crude oil displaying particular weakness as a burdensome supply overhangs the market.'' The benchmark Goldman Sachs Commodities Index lost 2.3 percent Monday to end at 139.29 points, not far from the 21-year closing low of 136.96 points seen last August 31. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, crude oil for January delivery ended down 44 cents at $12.45 a barrel. The crude oil market is focused this week on the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries ministerial meeting in Vienna on Wednesday, but no further output cuts are expected despite the renewed slump in oil prices recently, analysts said. ''We still firmly believe that the greatest support among key members of the group will be for an extension of the current quota agreement from June 1999 to the end of that year,'' said John Saucer, an analyst with investment bank Salomon Smith Barney in Houston. On the Chicago Board of Trade, soft red winter wheat futures closed lower after dipping to the lowest intraday levels in seven weeks. Wheat prices fell despite Monday's U.S. Agriculture Department weekly data showing wheat exports for the week ended November 19 at 20.743 million bushels, near the high end of trade expectations. Wheat for December delivery closed 8-1/2 cents per bushel lower at $2.77. Ample supplies continue to weigh on wheat prices, said Merrill Lynch analyst Randy Mittelstaedt. ''While the wheat market has been able to trade with a supportive tone over the last couple of months, due to generally positive developments regarding U.S. export prospects, the old-crop U.S. wheat balance sheet continues to be highlighted by burdensome stocks,'' Mittelstaedt said. CBOT corn futures also closed lower as traders rushed to get out of positions ahead of the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday Thursday which falls just before first notice day for deliveries on the December corn contract due on Monday, November 30. Corn for December delivery closed 2-3/4 cents per bushel lower at $2.17-1/4. ''Everybody rushed to get out before the shortened sessions and before first notice day Monday,'' said Charlie Sernatinger, an analyst for E.D. and F. Man International. CBOT soybean prices also tumbled, ending at the lowest levels in nearly three weeks, hit by commodity fund selling and a forecast for good crop weather in South America. January soybeans closed 12 cents per bushel lower at $5.68-1/2 a bushel, the contract's lowest close since November 5. But gold prices ended higher in New York, despite a firmer U.S. dollar and soaring U.S. stock market. Usually a strong U.S. dollar and strong equities market discourage investors from safe-haven buying of hard assets like gold, traders said. ''The fact that gold and silver could end higher in the face of the strong dollar and strong stock market suggests the fear of some year-end profit-taking, and mutual fund redemptions may undermine the recovery in the Dow Jones index,'' said Carlos Perez-Santalla, a COMEX floor trader with Hudson River Futures in New York. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, COMEX December gold ended up 70 cents at $297.10 an ounce, after seeing the highest levels in a month last week. Copyright 1998 Reuters Limited.

To: Alex who wrote (23346)	11/24/1998 7:46:00 PM
From: goldsnow	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 116752

China advised to cut forex holdings in US$: report CHINA should cut its holdings of US dollar-denominated foreign exchange to hedge against a possible fall in the dollar, the China Reform News said yesterday. "China should make use of an opportunity provided by the launching of the euro to adjust foreign exchange reserves and foreign debts to disperse risks," the newspaper quoted Zhou Shijian, an expert on Sino-US trade, as saying. Mr Zhou is vice-president of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce of Metals and Minerals and Chemicals Importers and Exporters. Some 65 per cent of China's foreign exchange reserves -- totalling US$143.7 billion (S$234.6 billion) as at end-October -- are held in dollars, and most of its trade settlements are conducted in the currency, Mr Zhou said. He cited rising trade deficits, dependence on foreign investment and other "bubble elements" in the US economy as factors that could spark a fall in the greenback in the future. Other economists predicted the introduction of the new single European currency and a rebounding Japanese yen could lead to a weaker dollar, the newspaper said. -- Reuters business-times.asia1.com.sg