Column: Electric dreams turn into a nightmare for battery metals
A sector that was once racing to build new supply has been closing mines and deferring projects as low prices bite into the cost curve.
Platinum is headed for its biggest drop in five weeks, extending a decline from a six-year high reached earlier this month, as investors reassess the PGM market.
Spot platinum declined 2.8% to $1,239.73/oz by 11:45 a.m. in New York, as the US dollar saw slight gains and stocks declined on worries that economic recovery prospects are already priced in. Palladium also fell by 2.6% to $2,341.50/oz.
Click here for an interactive chart of platinum prices.
One week earlier, platinum rallied past the $1,300/oz level to its highest since September 2014 on bets that a recovery in industrial demand and stricter emissions rules will tighten supply of the metal used to curb pollution from cars and trucks. However, prices fell on Tuesday as investors paused to re-evaluate the demand outlook.
Meanwhile, gold prices eased from a one-week peak on Tuesday as investors take a “wait and see approach” on the economic outlook, with a stronger dollar and higher US Treasury yields both tarnishing the appeal of bullion.
Spot gold slipped 0.1% to $1,807.65/oz, while US gold futures remained almost level at $1,807.10/oz.
“Gold’s trend seems to be to the downside, and there’s no indication that it’s reversing for now … until we get a real spike in inflation expectations or a Fed that talks about controlling the yield curve,” IG Market analyst Kyle Rodda told Reuters.
Holdings in bullion-backed exchange-traded funds have seen steady outflows, with SPDR Gold Shares, the largest ETF, on Monday registering the biggest drop since November.
(With files from Bloomberg and Reuters)
