BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany’s Chambers of Industry and Commerce DIHK on Thursday cut its 2018 growth forecast to 1.8 percent from 2.2 percent and predicted a slowdown to 1.7 percent next year as Europe’s largest economy faces mounting risks at home and abroad.The forecasts are based on the assumption that global trade disputes do not escalate and Britain does not crash out of the Europe...Read More
(Reuters) - U.S. stock futures fell on Thursday after the Federal Reserve’s minutes showed policy makers broadly agreed on the need to raise interest rates further, fanning concerns that triggered a brutal selloff last week.The Fed’s view, detailed in the minutes of its September meeting released on Wednesday, bolsters expectations of a fourth interest rate increase in December and cha...Read More
* Spain sells 4.5 bln euros of bonds, France 9.7 bln euros* FOMC minutes show all policy-makers back rate hike* France, Spain to sell bonds; Italy bond exchange due* German Bund yields pull back from 2-week lows* Euro zone periphery govt bond yields tmsnrt.rs/2ii2Bqr (Adds quote, detail on auctions, updates prices)By Dhara RanasingheLONDON, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Government bond yields across the eu...Read More
SAN PEDRO DE ATACAMA (Reuters) - Earlier this year, the world’s two biggest lithium producers publicly celebrated new deals with Chile’s government that will allow them to vastly increase output of the ultralight battery metal from the Atacama, the world’s driest desert.U.S.-based Albemarle Corp and Chile’s SQM operate just 3 miles (5 km) apart in the remote Salar, a basin...Read More
(Kitco News) - Gold prices ticked up after the index for current general activity in the Philadelphia Federal Reserve’s manufacturing business outlook survey posted a decline to 22.2 in October following a rebound to 22.9 in September, suggesting slightly slower economic growth. The consensus expectations compiled by news organizations were for a reading of somewhere around 19.7.Gold prices...Read More
(Kitco News) - Gold remained roughly steady Thursday after Labor Department datashowed that initial weekly U.S. jobless claims fell by 5,000 to aseasonally adjusted 210,000 in the week to Saturday. Comex December gold was last up 60 cents to$1,228 an ounce.Consensus expectations compiled by various news organizations hadcalled for initial claims to be around 210,000 to 215,000. The gover...Read More
Thursday's declines add to the market's steep losses for the month. The Dow and S&P 500 have fallen more than 4 percent each, while the Nasdaq is down nearly 7 percent in October.Among the reasons for selling on Thursday, according to investors, were worries about the U.S.-China trade war, rising interest rates and lingering worries about possible overvalued U.S. tech stocks.Fred Imbert| @foim...Read More
(Kitco News) - Gold prices aretrading near unchanged in early U.S. trading Thursday. This week's pause, orsideways trading on the daily chart, is normal given the solid gains scoredlast week. Bulls appear to be readying for their next upside advance. December goldfutures were last up $0.40 an ounce at $1,227.90. December Comex silver waslast down $0.103 at $14.56 an ounce. Globalstock markets were...Read More
Gold’s recent move back above $1,220 anounce may signal a turning point for the precious metal, as investor buying haspicked up, says Standard Chartered. Prices must still break up through a numberof technical-chart levels to reach the psychologically important1,300-per-ounce level, Standard says. “We continue to believe price risks areskewed to the upside, particularly as $1,220/oz wa...Read More
Editor's Note: Welcome to Kitco's new Bitcoin Daily Technical Alert. Every trading day veteran Kitco technical analyst Jim Wyckoff will provide you with a concise and easy-to-understand near-term technical brief on Bitcoin. Importantly, Jim will glean the short-term charts and technical studies, and then alert you to the signals he sees regarding upcoming potential bigger price moves or price tren...Read More
Gold proved that $1,180 was agreat support level and now is trying to confirm a higher low at $1,220. Thebreakout through the $1,220 level was a classic blow-off trade -- continuedfailure at a level and then an explosion through as we saw on Oct. 11.After making higher lows, whichset up the big move higher, gold is repeating that same pattern, and ourexpectations are to see the pattern repeat. Blo...Read More
* Report says nickel pig iron output is rising in China * Copper dips to one-week low * Zinc only metal in positive territory on stocks fall(Updates with closing prices, adds nickel balance data)By Eric OnstadLONDON, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Nickel hit a one-month low onThursday, with copper and lead prices also in the red, asinvestors worried about Chinese growth and higher U.S. interestrates.Zinc, mea...Read More
(Updates prices, adds comments and chart) * Inflows to gold funds show positive sentiment - analyst * Dollar index near one-week high* Silver and platinum slip to lowest in a week By Sumita Layek and Arpan VargheseBENGALURU, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Gold edged higher on Thursday,supported by an improved technical outlook that helped the metalhold out against a stronger dollar.Spot gold rose 0.1 percent...Read More
Gold breaks higher.Silver remains below resistance.Silver tried to encourage gold lower in September but failed.Silver could attract a speculative herd.USLV could be a good short-term bet, but use a stop if it starts going south.Gold and silver have long histories as a means of exchange or hard money. The precious metals have been around a lot longer than the fiat currencies we use each day to pay...Read More
(Updates domestic closing price, adds details)SHANGHAI, Oct 18 (Reuters) - China's yuan closed at itsweakest in more than 21 months against a broadly stronger dollaron Thursday, as the U.S. Federal Reserve's hawkish stance oninterest rates and the U.S. Treasury's failure to label China asa currency manipulator gave traders confidence to drive the yuanlower.The onshore spot yuan ended the day at 6....Read More
* SSEC loses 2.9 pct, touches lowest point since Nov 2014 * CSI 300 down 2.4 pct, energy sub index drops 4.9 pct * Shares pledged for loans become a concern for investors By Noah SinHONG KONG, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Chinese stocks fell sharply onThursday as heavy selling in the energy sector and worries aboutthe levels of borrowing in the stock market added to broaderconcerns over growth and the globa...Read More
* Pound at 10-day low after May comments on Irish border * Retail sales weaker than expected, also weigh on currency * Graphic: World FX rates in 2018* Graphic: Trade-weighted sterling since Brexit vote (Writes through after May comments, updates prices)LONDON, Oct 18 (Reuters) - The pound fell to intraday lowsin late Thursday trade, as summit talks in Brussels failed toresolve a Brexit standoff b...Read More
Researchers at the University of California - Berkeley have discovered that a bacterium named Moorella thermoacetica produces solar fuels through artificial photosynthesis in a very efficient way when fed with gold.In a paper published in Nature Nanotechnology, the scientists explain that by placing light-absorbing gold nanoclusters inside the CO2-hungry bacterium, they have created a biohybrid sy...Read More
Researchers at the University of California – Berkeley have discovered that a bacterium named Moorella thermoacetica produces solar fuels through artificial photosynthesis in a very efficient way when fed with gold.In a paper published in Nature Nanotechnology, the scientists explain that by placing light-absorbing gold nanoclusters inside the CO2-hungry bacterium, they have created a biohyb...Read More
An investor in Hudbay Minerals Inc. wants to meet with the Toronto miner to discuss replacing members of its board, as well as to seek assurances it won't pursue acquisitions or joint venture without consulting shareholders, according to a person familiar with the matter.Waterton Global Resource Management has expressed its concerns to Hudbay Chairman Alan Hibben, telling him that it would reserve...Read More