Commodities

Commodities daily update: precious metals, base metals, crude oil (January 23, 2012)

Contributed by Nirmal Bang

By Nirmal Bang

- Gold demand in India, the world's biggest consumer of bullion, emerged after a gap as consumers made their wedding purchases with prices of the dollar-quoted yellow metal falling in the local market on the rupee's strength.

- Japanese copper wire and cable shipments rose 2.9 percent from a year earlier in December on robust demand from carmakers, though orders from utilities plunged to a 35-year low as they cut back on spending in the wake of the Fukushima nuclear crisis, an industry body said on Monday.

- Weak demand and price declines for metals in a lacklustre global economy will play a role in pushing aluminium makers to continue cutting production as well as encourage nickel and zinc producers to make cutbacks, albeit on a smaller scale.

- European Union governments gave their preliminary approval to a ban on Iranian crude oil imports on Monday, aiming to choke off Tehran's chief source of income and pressure it to hold back its disputed nuclear activities.

- Russia's top oil company, state-owned Rosneft ROSN.MM, reported reserves replacement of more than 160 percent under U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission rules, in part due to a big upward revision for its largest gas field.