Gold rose, oil fell below $US40 a barrel in a big fall on the day, iron ore steadied and copper eased as most commodity prices joined equities in heading lower on Tuesday.
A stronger US dollar (thanks to haven demand for US dollar assets in the Wall Street sell down) didn’t help commodities (but had little impact on gold’s rise).
The Aussie dollar lost more than half a cent to end around 72.12 US cents in early Asian dealings as the greenback strengthened.
Unlike Wall Street, there was a bit of trading in commodities on Monday (Wall Street was closed for the US Labour Day holiday as were some exchanges in Europe).
The rise in volatility saw Comex December gold end $US8.90 higher, or 0.5%, to settle at $US1,943.20 an ounce, after trading as low as $US1,911.70n in what was a nervy session for the so-called safe-haven investment.
That was after the 2.1% fall last week when the falls in shares on Thursday and Friday undercut the value of the metal.
Comex December silver added 28 cents, or 1%, at $US26.991 an ounce, after touching an earlier low at $US25.985.
And Comex December copper contract shed 1.2% to settle at $US3.025 a pound. That was despite good export figures from China, but weak import data which saw shipments of the metal into China fall in August.
Meanwhile, oil futures fell further on Tuesday with Brent joining West Texas Intermediate in settling under $US40 a barrel.
Rather than the worries about share prices, oil prices were driven lower by renewed concerns about weak demand, a reported cut by the Saudis in their October oil prices, and rising COVID-19 cases, especially in parts of Europe.
The US marker, West Texas Intermediate crude for October delivery fell $US3.01, or 7.6%, to $US36.76 a barrel in New York. That was a catch-up fall for WTI.
In Europe, November Brent crude, the global benchmark, lost $US2.23, or 5.3%, to settle at $39.78 a barrel, after a 1.5% decline on Monday, when US markets were closed Monday.
And global iron ore prices were essentially steady on Tuesday with a one-cent a tonne rise in the price of the 62% Fe fines price (delivered to northern China) to $US129.12 a tonne.
