How low can commodities go?
The chase by Marty Cej:
Commodities have slowly but surely worked their way up to the top of our priorities list. Oil is now down for a seventh straight day, the longest losing streak since December 2009, as imports to China tumbled and Europe's sovereign debt crisis simmered. Crude has broken down through several key technical barriers in the past few days but today's modest decline may indicate some reluctance on the part of traders to push it lower until they get more evidence that the U.S. economic recovery is cooling. Gold is also modestly lower and testing technical resistance as some speculators turn to the U.S. dollar as a safe haven (I know, right?).
Reluctant to stand idly by as a trade goes against it, Goldman Sachs has thrown its support behind gold this morning, reiterating a six-month price forecast for $1,840. Goldman argues that the case for gold as the currency of last resort remains in place. "Weaker US growth -- our US economists are forecasting additional monetary easing at the June 19-20 FOMC meeting -- renewed European sovereign risks and resilient physical demand are also pointing to higher gold prices," Goldman's commodity team said in a note to clients. "However, it is also increasingly apparent that already low market expectations will likely require continued deterioration in Europe or in the U.S. to trigger a sharp inflow into gold, in our view." The trading group at Goldman lost money on just one day last quarter. They do not want to go through that hell again.
There's something for everyone who likes to travel and enjoy the great outdoors today. We have earnings from Bombardier, which can wing you to your rustic destination where you jump onto a mud-splattered ATV and roar off into the woods. When you arrive at the clearing, you can set up your Canadian Tire bought tent and camp-stove, then drop your line into the lake. Then, when the grizzly comes snuffling into camp in the wee hours, you can be thankful -- in those brief moments of clarity between prayer and terror -- that you made that call to Sun Life a few months back. And once the bear leaves, you will be exceedingly grateful to Cascades, which continues to produce fine bathroom tissue. Maybe your mobile phone will pick up a signal fromManitoba Tel, maybe not, but one thing is for certain: next summer you'll save a few bucks, stay home and maybe catch a few summer blockbusters at a Cineplex theatre. We hear from each of these Canadian companies today.
Bombardier may be of particular interest today after the company reported a 16 percent drop in profit, missing revenue projections by a wide margin. The first quarter is typically the company's weakest quarter, but typically not this weak.
