GENERAL MARKET CONDITIONS

It’s the US dollar story for gold and silver and nothing else. Euro/Usd rose to 1.2813 while comex gold December rose to $764.80 and thereafter the euro fell and gold, silver and crude oil also fell. Still gold and silver have performed exceedingly well. Gold, silver and other commodities have been falling only after (A) US dollar gains or (B) Stock markets fall. When conditions A &B occur simultaneously then they fall else they are volatile. This will continue today also.

Minutes of Fed meeting

Federal Reserve policy makers last month predicted the U.S. economy will contract through the middle of 2009, with some prepared to lower interest rates further in response, a record of their meeting showed. ``Some suggested that additional policy easing could well be appropriate at future meetings,'' the Fed said in minutes of the Oct. 28-29 Federal Open Market Committee gathering released. In any event, the Committee agreed to take whatever steps were necessary to support the recovery. Fed officials cut their forecasts for inflation and growth to account for the choking off of credit to households and businesses as some of the biggest financial companies failed. Some FOMC members foresaw a risk that the inflation rate will fall below the Fed's objective of ``price stability.''

Our View: Interest rate cuts by the Fed will reach a bottom in December 2008 or January 2008. Thereafter it remains to be seen what other hard measures Federal reserves takes to spruce the US economy. In the short term the US dollar may gain as other regions across the globe cut interest rates and interest rate differentials narrow. Once the interest rates cuts are over by most of the countries the US dollar will weaken at a modest pace. This may happen for the remaining part of 2008 but will surely happen after the first quarter of 2009.

COMEX COPPER DECEMBER

Copper needs to hold $157 to prevent another round of selling to $149 and $135. On the higher side $172 is the resistance. Overall downward pressure is there on copper.

NYMEX CRUDE OIL (1ST CONTRACT)

Crude oil needs to hold $49.80 to prevent a fall to $46.00. On the higher side $53.80 and $56.20 are the resistances.


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