Small and mid-sized commodity traders are scrambling to find new lenders, including Asian and African banks, as dollar funding dries up from the big European banks that have been among their traditional creditors.
Former leaders in commodities finance including BNP Paribas and Credit Agricole are retrenching from the financing of transactions such as storing oil or arbitraging copper due to a lack of dollar financing and to capital requirements under stringent new rules known as Basel III………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The mining industry is shifting from equity to debt markets to meet its financing needs, and this, in turn, is likely to prompt a return to commodity hedging.
Small and medium-sized mining companies are turning to the debt markets for funds, as volatile equity markets stem traditional sources of funding for the industry. Commodities bankers say that so far the shift in power from equity to bondholders has not been intense enough to force miners to return to hedging, but some industry veterans say that a hedging U-turn is in the making………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Bank of America Corp. overtook JPMorgan Chase & Co. as the biggest lender to the commodities industry in the first five months as French lenders led by BNP Paribas SA retreated amid the debt crisis.
Commodity loans arranged by Charlotte, North Carolina-based Bank of America totaled $14.71 billion, and New York-based JPMorgan’s $14.41 billion ranked it second, according to syndicated-loan data compiled by Bloomberg. Citigroup Inc. was the third biggest with $13.68 billion of financing, rising from fourth last year. BNP Paribas slipped to 17th from second………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The global prices of commodities, from crude oil to coal to metals, have turned soft. A combination of fundamental and liquidity-related factors appears to be influencing that slide. The Thomson Reuters/Jefferies CRB Commodity Index has fallen 17% from its 2012 high, and is down 22.3% from a year ago.
On Wednesday, the Financial Times newspaper reported on its website that mining conglomerate BHP Billiton Ltd has cut its outlook for commodity prices, used in making internal forecasts, for the next three-five years………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The world’s oil cartel Opec has agreed to maintain its current cap on production levels, despite Brent crude’s fall to below $100 a barrel.
Some Opec nations had argued for the cap to be reduced, fearing high supplies could cause a collapse in oil prices - especially if the debt crisis causes a significant drop in demand………………………………………..Full Article: Source

OPEC left oil output limits on hold on Thursday, powerless to do anything other than hope top producer Saudi Arabia scales back supplies unilaterally soon to stem a $30 (19.28 pounds) slide in prices.
Several in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries called on Saudi to cut back to bring collective supply down to the 30 million barrel a day limit to defend $100-a-barrel crude………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Stephen Schork, president of the Schork Group, talks about the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries’ decision to keep its production ceiling unchanged and the outlook for OPEC output. Schork also discusses the outlook for oil and gasoline prices.……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Keeping OPEC’s oil output limits unchanged will not be enough to halt the fall in the price of crude, Algerian Energy Minister Youcef Yousfi was quoted as saying on Thursday.
“There is at the moment an unjustified rise in the organisation’s (OPEC’s) production,” Yousfi was quoted as saying by Algeria’s APS state news agency………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Oil exports from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries will be little changed this month as Asian refiners increase production, according to tanker- tracker Oil Movements.
OPEC will ship 23.96 million barrels a day in the four weeks to June 30, compared with 24.06 million in the period to June 2, the researcher said today in an e-mailed report. The data exclude Angola and Ecuador. Exports in the period are 5 percent higher than a year, Oil Movements said………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Demand destruction continues to happen in crude oil in Asia, Europe and US markets and hence demand growth is expected to fall to 740, 000 barrels per day in 2012, the lowest since 2009, according to Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BofAML).
Global GDP growth is expected to be 3.3% in 2012 and leading indicators point to continued weakness in Oil demand this year, BofAML said………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Getting ever louder in its calls for the world to get serious about climate change, the International Energy Agency (IEA) is also increasingly concrete about what needs to be done.
Global investments in renewable energy must double by 2020 to $23.9 trillion to keep global temperatures from rising beyond 2°C, says IEA in its new book, Energy Technology Perspectives 2012. And they must grow to $140 trillion by 2050………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Fatih Birol, the chief economist of the International Energy Agency, has warned EU countries about the “absurd” strategies they use to subsidise fossil fuels. In an exclusive interview with EurActiv, he urged EU leaders to make the Energy Efficiency Directive, currently in its final negotiation stage, “a must”.
“Not to push the energy efficiency measures is another way of asking for higher emissions, higher energy import bills and higher energy insecurity,” Birol said………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The price of gold may reach $2,000 a troy ounce within the next two years, the chief global commodity strategist at J.P. Morgan said Thursday.
Marginal gold mines were starting to report production costs at that level, despite some market skepticism that such a level would be reached, Colin Fenton told reporters………………………………………..Full Article: Source

More people are thinking about gold as an investment. With banks in distress, bonds paying zilch, and “easy money” the operating principle for currency managers around the world, it makes sense.
Unless you want to trade actively, I suggest owning physical gold bullion. This is a lot easier than it may appear, and the costs are nearly as low as various “virtual gold” alternatives like ETFs………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Gold traders are bullish for a fourth consecutive week after hedge funds added to bets that prices will rally, exchange-traded products backed by the metal expanded and Europe’s debt crisis roiled markets.
Twenty-four analysts surveyed by Bloomberg said they expect gold to gain next week and six were bearish. ……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Euro debt crisis fears has triggered a renewed demand for gold from private investors. A leading bullion dealer said that demand for gold has risen 50pc since last year and that it now holds more than 30 tonnes of gold worth more than £1bn on behalf of private investors. It is the first time it has broken the £1bn barrier it said.
Adrian Ash, head of research at BullionVault, said: “While gold may slip out of view for some when prices ease back, as they have done since last summer’s record highs, private investors are using this lull to build their gold holdings………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The Indian Monsoon season has finally began after what local press call a “dull” start, and it could have a significant impact on Gold Investment and jewelry demand in the world’s #1 market, according to analysts.
According to the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India, a good monsoon means a rise in Gold Investment and jewelry demand after the harvest. Rainfall ensures healthy crops in India, says AssoCham, which in turn ensures a healthy environment for Gold Investment………………………………………..Full Article: Source

A safe haven trade may be starting to form in gold, said Union Bank of Switzerland (UBS) in a commodities briefing.
According to the Zurich based bank, yellow metal is sensitive to U.S. economic data, as weak reports lead to higher expectations for more quantitative easing………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The silver price is depressed compared with its historical relationship to gold, one ounce being worth about 55 of silver, against the historical rate of 15 or 16. The reason, perhaps, has to do with silver’s demonetization and its role as an industrial metal.
However, with global supply from mines and recycling running at about one billion ounces and demand at only a hundred million less, it does not take much investment demand to create a severe shortage………………………………………..Full Article: Source

With gold prices reaching an alltime high of Rs 30,420 per 10 gm on Wednesday, investors are keen on parking their money in platinum, which is trading at Rs 28,500 per 10 gm. Analysts said it was right time to buy platinum because the metal is likely to provide nearly 30% returns by the end of the year.
The prices of platinum have moved up by 30% to 40% annually in the last five years. “Investors are increasingly becoming wary of gold prices due to negative international factors , including euro zone debt crisis, US unemployment data and rupee depreciation………………………………………..Full Article: Source

FundsNetwork has announced a range of 50 exchange traded funds (ETFs) will launch on the platform for advisers next week.
The platform is launching an initial range of 50 physically-backed ETFs, including index-linked trackers and commodity ETFs, on Monday, 18 June, from the following providers: Credit Suisse, ETF Securities, HSBC and iShares. ……………………………………….Full Article: Source

As far as soft commodities are concerned, sugar futures offer a compelling investment thesis, as their solid liquidity and high volatility make them ideal for active traders looking to make a profit.
The commodity is also well-known for sticking to a relatively consistent seasonal pattern, allowing for its movements to be somewhat predictable depending which harvest season is upcoming. However, in the grand scheme of things, many traders may focus their efforts on the more popular commodities like natural gas and gold………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The commodity markets regulator in India wants the government to allow trading of futures by banks to boost participation and liquidity.
“The issue is under consideration in the ministry of finance,” said Ramesh Abhishek, chairman of the Forward Markets Commission (FMC), which is governed by the ministry of consumer affairs, food and public distribution. “We want the banks to participate in these markets only for the purpose of hedging.”……………………………………….Full Article: Source

BHP Billiton may have to write $2 billion off the value of its aluminium assets as the global economy struggles, industry experts say. And more writedowns could follow if there is no let-up in the poor conditions buffeting the sector, they say.
According to research published by Bank of America analysts, BHP’s aluminium business is experiencing “very difficult” conditions………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Imagine for a moment that two decades ago, a newly unified Germany set out to take over the European Continent, as the previous unified Germany had tried and failed to do half a century earlier. This time it would use money, not guns, to accomplish the goal.
There is, let me hasten to note, no evidence of any such conspiracy. But if there had been, things might have played out more or less as they have………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Brazil’s second-largest city will retire any reductions it uses when accounting for its 2020 target, said Rodrigo Rosa, special adviser on climate protection to Rio de Janeiro Mayor Eduardo Paes. “Either we retire through the targets, or we sell the credits,” Rosa said in an interview in Cologne, Germany.
China, which is setting up seven pilot carbon markets, also will ensure it doesn’t both sell reductions abroad and use them to meet its own limits, said Wang Shu, an official in the department of climate change in the National Development and Reform Commission in Beijing………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Despite leading in some aspects of green technology, such as solar and wind power, China still faces a fight to reduce its level of emissions.
In November, Beijing expanded its resources tax across the nation after more than a year of trials and is considering a tax on carbon emissions. In doing so the government hopes to channel money and resources into green energy projects, including research and development………………………………………..Full Article: Source