tin price better than other commodities, page-3

last night

Tin 17600.0-17620.0 Dn 500


17 Sep 2008 17:49 GMT
BASE METALS: Lower On Heavy Losses In Equity Markets (Dow Jones)

DJ BASE METALS: Lower On Heavy Losses In Equity Markets

By Matthew Walls
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES


LONDON (Dow Jones)--Heavy losses in U.S. equity markets pressured base metals lower across the board Wednesday and are threatening to drag them to fresh lows, traders said.

Three-month copper closed at $6,740 a metric ton, down $130 from Tuesday's close.

Traders said copper may slide toward $6,300 in the short term, while nickel's close has worsened its technical close.

"Copper is looking very vulnerable to another sell-off," said a London-based trader. "It is dragging down the other ones."

The base metals market was relatively calm compared to the frenzy in the gold market, where gold surged 8% in the space of several hours as investors sought safety from the turmoil engulfing financial markets.

"I think any money that's exiting (stocks), where else would it go, really," said a London-based broker. "(Gold) has a function other commodities don'thave, which is safe haven."

Traders said the market would likely continue to focus on the performance of equity markets and developments in financial markets.

Aluminum fell to its lowest since January, dented by another massive increase in LME inventories. Three-month aluminum ended the day at $2,500/ton, down $31 on the day.

Inventories jumped over 88,000 tons, after rising over 50,000 tons Tuesday,to 1.33 million tons.

As most of the deliveries occurred in the U.S., traders said the deliveries were likely due to the failure of companies holding stock to get financing.

"If people can't finance the metal because of higher loan rates, I'd imagine they'd deliver it," said a broker in London.

Nickel closed at $17,005 and broke below the August low of $17,370 during intraday trade, a bearish technical signal, said the London-based trader. Speculative traders may decide to sell the metal Thursday on that basis, he
added.


Prices in dollar a metric ton.
3 Months Metal Bid-Ask Change from
Tuesday PM kerb
Copper 6740.0-6750.0 Dn 130
Lead 1779.5-1780.5 Dn 20.5
Zinc 1710.0-1720.0 Dn 37
Aluminum 2500.0-2501.0 Dn 31
Nickel 17005.0-17010.0 Dn 395
Tin 17600.0-17620.0 Dn 500
Aluminum Alloy 2220.0-2240.0 Dn 25
Aluminum Alloy 2220.0-2230.0 Dn 10
(NASAAC)


-By Matthew Walls, Dow Jones Newswires; +44 (0)20 7842 9412;
[email protected]