Gold Futures Fall 1.9%

Gold Futures Fall 1.9% - WSJ.com

Gold futures fell Friday, tracking declines in the euro after a reading on the U.S. labor market missed forecasts but didn't show enough weakness to lift expectations that the Federal Reserve will have to act to prop up the economy.  The most actively traded gold contract, for August delivery, fell $30.50, or 1.9%, to settle at $1,578.90 a troy ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, the lowest ending price since June 28.

Nymex Crude Falls 3.3% On Weak Jobs Report, Norway

OIL FUTURES: Nymex Crude Falls 3.3% On Weak Jobs Report, Norway - WSJ.com

Crude oil futures fell 3.3% Friday after a surprisingly weak U.S. jobs report and amid expectations that a Norwegian oil strike would end soon.  Light, sweet crude for August delivery settled at $84.45 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, down $2.77. Brent crude on the ICE futures exchange settled at $98.19 a barrel, down $2.51 or 2.5%.  Oil futures, already down on the day, fell $1.23, or 1.4%, in the 25 minutes after the U.S. Labor Department reported that nonfarm payrolls for June grew by 80,000, below the 100,000 forecast by economists.

Euro falls to 2-year low vs U.S. dollar

FOREX-Euro falls to 2-year low vs U.S. dollar | Reuters
The euro fell to a two-year low against the U.S. dollar on Friday after a report showed U.S. employers hired at a dismal pace in June, stoking strong risk aversion and a flight to safe havens that put recent central bank interest rate cuts in stark relief. The report appeared to fuel concerns that Europe's debt crisis is shifting the U.S. economy into low gear. The weak U.S. jobs data came a day after the European Central Bank cut interest rates, further dampening the euro's appeal, and China and the Bank of England announced more monetary easing. With U.S. interest rates already near zero the loosening of monetary policy in Europe and China diminishes the relative interest rate advantages held over the greenback.

Oil, metals crumple on US jobs data; grain rally stalls

COMMODITIES-Oil, metals crumple on US jobs data; grain rally stalls | Reuters

Commodities tumbled on Friday by their most this year, eroding their second successive weekly gain after dismal U.S. jobs data fueled worries about the global economy and raw materials demand. Profit-taking in grain markets halted a three-week, drought-fueled rally that had driven corn prices up more than a third, while oil erased the week's gains, partly on hope that weekend talks between Norway's oil industry and striking oil and gas workers might avert a complete halt in production. U.S. data showed non-farm payrolls expanded by only 80,000 jobs in June, weaker than forecast and the third straight month that fewer than 100,000 jobs were created. The unemployment rate remained at 8.2 percent. The dollar rallied and U.S. stocks fell, a recipe for selling raw materials.

Buffett, Zuckerberg Lead Guest List for Sun Valley Event

Buffett, Zuckerberg Lead Guest List for Sun Valley Event - Businessweek

Billionaires Warren Buffett, Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg lead the roster of executives invited to Allen & Co.’s annual media conference in Sun Valley, Idaho, next week, according to a guest list obtained by Bloomberg News.  Google Inc. (GOOG) (GOOG) Chairman Eric Schmidt, Amazon.com Inc. Chief Executive Officer Jeff Bezos and Apple Inc. (AAPL) (AAPL) CEO Tim Cook are also invited, according to the document, as is News Corp. (NWSA) (NWSA) Chairman and CEO Rupert Murdoch.  The exclusive gathering, sponsored by investment bank Allen & Co. since 1983, provides an intimate setting for media executives to discuss deals and reflect on the industry while enjoying family bike rides or fly fishing. Some of media’s largest buyouts were hatched or moved forward at Sun Valley, including Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) (CMCSA)’s 2011 purchase of NBC Universal.

Crude Declines as U.S. Payrolls Numbers Miss Estimates

Crude Declines as U.S. Payrolls Numbers Miss Estimates - Bloomberg

Oil fell a second day in New York after the U.S. added fewer jobs than forecast last month while a planned meeting between labor unions and oil companies in Norway signaled output disruptions may be averted.  West Texas Intermediate futures lost as much as 2.8 percent, erasing a weekly gain. Payrolls rose 80,000 last month after a 77,000 increase in May, Labor Department figures showed today in Washington. Economists projected a 100,000 gain, according to the median estimate in a Bloomberg News survey. Norway’s Ministry of Labor said it’s called labor unions representing striking workers and the country’s Oil Industry Association in for a meeting in Oslo at 6 p.m. local time today.

Commodities Fall Most in Two Weeks on U.S., Europe Economic Woes

Commodities Fall Most in Two Weeks on U.S., Europe Economic Woes - Bloomberg
Commodities fell the most in two weeks as signs of a faltering U.S. economy and escalating debt woes in Europe signaled less demand for energy and metals.  The Standard & Poor’s GSCI Spot Index (MXWD) of 24 raw materials declined 2.2 percent to 606.48 at 11:52 a.m. in New York. A close at that level would mark the biggest decline since June 21. Crude oil and gold dropped the most in a week, and industrial metals including lead, aluminum and copper slumped.  Employers in the U.S. hired fewer workers than forecast in June, indicting the labor market is making little progress toward reducing joblessness, government data showed today. Global equities extended losses, and Spain’s 10-year bond yields reached 7 percent as industrial production fell for the ninth straight month. The dollar rallied, eroding the appeal of raw materials.

Copper extends losses after weak U.S. job data

Copper extends losses after weak U.S. job data | Reuters

Copper extended losses on Friday under the weight of a stronger dollar after data from the United States showed the job market in the world's biggest economy was not recovering quickly enough, which added to worries about a severe slowdown in China.  Benchmark copper on the London Metal Exchange, untraded at the close, was last bid at $7,530 per tonne versus $7,695 at Thursday's close.  It fell 2 percent this week.

Treasury Bonds Boosted By U.S. Jobs Data

Treasury Bonds Boosted By U.S. Jobs Data - WSJ.com
Treasury bond prices strengthened Friday as a disappointing jobs report fanned worries over the health of the U.S. economy.  Buying in the safe-harbor market pushed down the benchmark 10-year note's yield, which moves inversely to its price, to as low as 1.546%--the lowest level since June 5.

Gold steady before US jobs data, 2nd wk of gains likely

PRECIOUS-Gold steady before US jobs data, 2nd wk of gains likely | Reuters
Gold remained on track for a second straight week of gains on Friday, though it was little changed from the day before as investors waited for more U.S. jobs data to help gauge the health of the world's top economy and provide trading cues. Some traders said Thursday's private U.S. employment data indicated that key non-farm payroll numbers on Friday could also be robust, dampening hopes for further easing by the Federal Reserve and hurting appetite for commodities.

U.S. Stock Futures Decline on Tepid Payrolls Growth

U.S. Stock Futures Decline on Tepid Payrolls Growth - WSJ.com
U.S. stock futures fell after domestic jobs grew by just 80,000 in June, falling short of expectations and suggesting further weakness in the economy.  Less than an hour ahead of the open, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures lost 70 points, or 0.6%, to 12762. Standard & Poor's 500-stock index futures gave up nine points, or 0.7%, to 1352 and Nasdaq 100 futures eased 14 points, or 0.5%, to 2629.  Prior to the jobs report data, Dow futures had slipped 14 points, S&P 500 futures had given up three points and Nasdaq futures edged down ...

Corn Price Gain Seen Prompting Higher Meat, Soda Costs

Corn Price Gain Seen Prompting Higher Meat, Soda Costs - Businessweek
Corn prices at a nine-month high will mean higher costs for U.S. restaurants and foodmakers if the surge is sustained, hurting their efforts to lure budget-minded Americans.  Eateries including Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen and McDonald’s Corp. (MCD) (MCD) may see higher meat costs, while cereal and beverage makers, such as General Mills Inc. (GIS) (GIS) and Coca-Cola Co. (KO) (KO), may face elevated corn and sweetener prices. Consumer sentiment slumped to a six-month low in June, signaling companies will have a tough time passing along price increases.  “Corn is king, and corn is a commodity that drives every other commodity,” Alice LeBlanc, chief global supply chain officer at Popeyes, owned by AFC Enterprises Inc. (AFCE) (AFCE), said in an interview. “Unless we get some precipitation across the corn belt, the corn prices will stay high.”  Corn prices jumped to a nine-month high of $7.13 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade yesterday and have surged more than 37 percent since June 15 as a crop-damaging drought in the U.S. Midwest shows no signs of abating. Corn futures for December delivery fell 1.8 percent to $6.9575 a bushel at 8:31 a.m. in Chicago amid speculation that cooler temperatures next week will stem yield losses.

Corn, soy snap drought-driven rally

GRAINS-Corn, soy snap drought-driven rally | Reuters
U.S. corn snapped a furious, nearly three-week rally on Friday, but the worst drought in the U.S. Corn Belt in a quarter century kept the golden grain within sight of an all-time high. Chicago wheat fell more than 3 percent, following corn, while soy eased nearly 1 percent after climbing to its highest level in four years in the last session. Commodities came under pressure from a disappointing U.S. jobs report that pushed down crude oil futures 3 percent. Still, with corn wilting during its critical pollination stage, the rally likely isn't over yet, barring a change to more favorable weather.