Copper Tumbles 6% (4% Yesterday)

TBI ^ | 10-20-2011 | Eric Platt

[blam]

Copper Tumbles 6%

Eric Platt
Oct. 20, 2011, 2:07 PM

Copper, after tumbling 4% yesterday, plummeted again on the COMEX today. It's down 6% to $3.07 per pound.

Take a look:

Image: FinViz

Precious metals are also taking a beating:

* December gold contracts: Down 2.0% to $1,614 an ounce

* December silver contracts: Down 2.8% to $30.36 an ounce

* January platinum contracts: Down 2.1% to $1,491 an ounce

* Southern Copper Corp. is trading 1.5% lower today.

(snip)

[blam]

"Dr Copper" Says Recession Is Around The Corner.... But May Only Be Half Right.

[cuban leaf]

I’m not seeing anything scary in gold and silver. Must be a construction thing...

[Mariner]

While China consumes over 40% of the world supply of copper, much of it goes into finished goods for further export.

That inventory jam is just around the corner. The Chinese have yet to adjust to that reality...they're still drunk with their own bubble.

I'm still predicting Gold at $1,200 by the end of the year.

[OldNavyVet]

I think our government, led by socialists, are very much manipulating markets with the Crash Protection Program being the authorizing legislation.

For Obama's first two years, the stock market (every trading day) was almost all new highs, with very few new lows. Then, in this third year, it's been largely the opposite.

Now, the metal markets are showing signs of heavy government intervention ... moving prices down.

Nonetheless, thanks to government printing presses, the Dollar is becoming worthless.

Get your gold and sliver now

[Rinnwald]

I’m still waiting for cheaper JHPs.

[smoothsailing]

Get your gold and sliver now

I've been hearing that alot lately. Any ideas on where silver will be in a year? I'm a real novice at this sort of thing.

[SargeK]

Gold and silver are hedges against inflation, against imploding currencies. They go up when the outlook is bleak.

Commodities like copper, oil, etc. are bellweathers of future growth. Prices go up when traders see future demand, and vice versa.

So, you are right, it is a construction (and manufacturing) thing. Traders are seeing less of both happening in the future.

IMHO of course.

[Buckeye McFrog]

hopefully this will tamp down on the derelicts stealing wire and piping from vacant houses

[familyop]

Oh, there’ll be some miserable downward fluctuations in the near future before the steady rise of commodities prices after that. The biggest investors are banking on it (large agricultural land purchases, regulations against small farms, regulations against small land owners, etc.).

[blam]

"I’m still waiting for cheaper JHPs."

I'm waiting for cheaper FMJ's.

[blam]

"I'm still predicting Gold at $1,200 by the end of the year. "

I've got that written down somewhere.(ahem)

[Mariner]

Mariner is the odd man out.

However, even Bernanke told Senate Dims today that the party is over and the Fed has exhausted it's arsenal.

We'll see.

When the US has to borrow all it's deficit on the open capital markets (as is historically the norm), first Europe is dead. This because of their enormous debt and the need to compete against the US Treasury for available free world capital.

Once Europe fails, nearly every western bank and many western governments will fail.