Copper, lead, zinc all decline

Base metals prices were lower on Tuesday.

December copper was 2 cents lower to $3.63 per pound in New York on new data indicating that the housing slump in the US is getting worse.

Meanwhile in London, three-month copper was down $45 to $7,995 per tonne.

Among other base metals, zinc dropped 0.1 percent to $2,922 per tonne, while lead was down 2.5 percent to $3,387 per tonne despite stockpiles which were at a 17-year low.

Precious metals prices were mixed, with gold and silver both lower even as the US dollar declined once again along with consumer confidence and existing home sales.

December gold in New York was down $10 per troy ounce early but managed to reduce declines to just 50 cents and was trading at $738.80 per troy ounce at the close of floor trade, while December silver was 2 cents lower to $13.62 per troy ounce.

October platinum was $5.20 cents higher to $1,349.40 per troy ounce after falling earlier on worries that demand could fall due to the strike at General Motors (NYSE: GM).

Crude oil prices were lower Tuesday ahead of Wednesday’s scheduled inventories report from the US Energy Information Administration.

West Texas Intermediate crude for November delivery fell $1.42 to $79.53 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while November contracts for Brent crude dropped $1.59 to $77.32 per barrel on the Intercontinental Exchange in London.

Nymex October gasoline was 5 cents lower to $2.04 per gallon, while November heating oil fell 4 cents to $2.21 per gallon and November natural gas was down 6 cents to $7.11 per million British thermal units.

November orange juice on ICE Futures US, formerly the New York Board of Trade, added 0.25 cent to $1.31 on the possibility that storms might damage the crop.

It was the highest close for the contract since 14 August, but it is still 34 percent lower on the year so far.

December wheat on the Chicago Board of Trade was up 9 cents at last report to $8.87 per bushel, but corn and soybeans both declined.

December corn was down 1.75 cents to $3.42 per bushel after the US Department of Agriculture said that 22 percent of the crop has been harvested, compared to 12 percent at the same time last year.

November soybeans dropped 5.75 cents to $9.73 per bushel after 58 percent of the crop was said to be in good or excellent condition, better than last week’s evaluation.

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