LONDON: The price of lead briefly rose to a record Monday after production was disrupted at a British refinery operated by the Swiss miner Xstrata and stockpiles of the metal declined. But it closed with a small loss for the day.
Xstrata declared "force majeure" at its Northfleet plant in England after ore supplies from Australia were delayed following a cyclone last month.
Force majeure is a means for a company to default on a sales contract due to circumstances beyond its control.
Inventories monitored by the London Metal Exchange fell by 825 metric tons, to 32,475 tons, the lowest level since June, 2005.
"The Xstrata news has had an impact because it s not a very liquid market and it doesn t take much buying to drive the price," said Michael Jansen, a strategist in London for J.
P. Morgan Securities.
Lead for delivery in three months on the LME rose $25 to a record $1,810 a ton at midsession.
But it closed down $5 at $1,780 a ton. It has gained nearly 9 percent so far this year.
Crude oil fell on speculation that U.
S. fuel inventories were sufficient to meet heating demand as the end of winter approaches.
U.
S. fuel stockpiles "are still going to fall, and we expect they may fall down to the five-year average," Paul Horsnell, Barclays Capital s head of commodities research, said. "But they are never going to run out.
"
Crude oil for April delivery was down 18 cents a barrel at $59.86 in electronic trading Monday afternoon on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Gold rose to a seven-month high in London on speculation that the dollar would weaken and demand for the metal used in jewelry would increase.
"Initially there was buying in Japan on the opening and we think that buying was related to the fact that the dollar is looking soft," said David Holmes, director of precious metals sales at Dresdner Kleinwort in London.
Gold futures for April delivery rose $2.60 to $675.
40 in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Floor trading in the United States was closed for a holiday.
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