The major commodity price indexes were up around 1% earlier today with better than expected economic data from China and expectations for a preliminary U.S.-China trade deal providing support.
Reuters reports that “Industrial production {in China} rose 6.2% year-on-year in November, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed, beating the median forecast of 5.0% growth in a Reuters poll and quickening from 4.7% in October. It was also the fastest year-on-year growth in five months... Retail sales rose 8.0% year-on-year in November, compared with an expected 7.6%, buoyed by stimulus measures and the November Singles Day shopping extravaganza, the statistics bureau said.” In London, LME 3-mo. copper and nickel prices traded as high as $6,206.50/mt and $14,255/mt, respectively, today. In New York, COMEX copper futures climbed as high as $2.819/lb. while NYMEX crude oil futures were little changed around $60 per barrel. In foreign exchange trading, the resumed its ascent following last week’s elections in the UK, with the pound recently trading around $1.334 while the euro firmed to $1.115. On Wall Street, the Dow Industrials were up 0.5% today following gains at most of the major European bourses.
