Vedanta to invest $2 billion in Saudi copper projects
Investment agreement is one of nine metals and mining deals, totalling over $9 billion, signed by Saudi Arabia with global mining companies.
Spot gold has dropped 1.09% as of 9:21 a.m. ET to US$1,432 per ounce, and spot silver has lost 0.73% to trade at US$23.77 per ounce.
The US dollar was higher after data showed retail sales coming in higher than expected. According to the US Commerce Department seasonally adjusted retail sales were up 0.1% in April. Economists at Marketwatch had been expecting a decline.
Economic data out of China was mixed. While analysts had been expecting industrial production to come in at 9.5%, official data showed April data at 9.3% higher from the same time last year. Retail sales were up 12.8% over last April.
The US dollar hit 101.30 yen, a four-year high. Japan is undergoing aggressive monetary easing under Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
Markets started in the red. As of mid-morning eastern time, the Dow Jones was down 0.36% to 15,064.27 and the S&P 500 was also down 0.39% to 1,627.88. The S&P TSX was down 0.41% to 12,538.
Image by clurr
