Gold prices lose 3.6 percent on week

Metals prices were down during the week as investors worried about what effect rising interest rates would have on demand for various commodities. Interest rates were raised in such diverse regions as the Eurozone, India, South Africa, Thailand, and Korea.

Among precious metals, gold dropped 3.6 percent over the week to $615.15 per troy ounce. Silver also declined, by 6 percent on the week to $11.38 per troy ounce, even though the government of Bolivia told miner Coeur D’Alene that it wouldn’t nationalize the company’s mine there, which is expected to produce 8 million ounces of silver every year, beginning in 2007. In addition, platinum lost 3.3 percent to $1,199 per troy ounce during the week, while palladium dropped 8 percent to $323 per troy ounce.

Base metals were down as well. Copper dropped 10.1 percent to $7,075 per tonne even though investors worried about short supply and increased demand. Nickel dropped 6.5 percent over the week to $20,000 per tonne, while lead fell by 1.9 percent to $1,010 per tonne on London Metal Exchange inventories that were at their most plentiful since December 2003. Aluminium was down 5.5 percent to $2,500 per tonne. Zinc, meanwhile, declined by 7.5 percent to $3,320 per tonne even after a prediction that supply shortages could last for at least the next ten years.

Crude oil prices rebounded after their fall on Thursday after the death of a key al-Qaeda leader was reported in Iraq. Concerns that attacks on Iraq’s infrastructure would continue, as well as weather worries, sent July contract Brent crude up $1.33 to $70.38 per barrel on the International Petroleum Exchange. West Texas Intermediate crude for July delivery added $1.20 to $71.55 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

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