CRB Index gains 1% led by crude, soft commodities

By Gautam Broker, Research Analyst at CNBC-TV18

Commodity cues

There was a slight recovery in commodities on Monday. CRB Index gained 1% led by crude and soft commodities. Dollar strength continued to weigh on commodities.

Trans Alaska Pipeline shutdown supported crude prices. Pipeline carries nearly 15% of output. Crude gained 1.5% on Monday and was inching closer to USD 90/barrel. It is currently trading at around USD 89.4 a barrel.

Portugal debt concerns aided precious metals. Physical demand from India supported gold prices. Copper continued to decline.

Dollar and euro debt concerns weighed on copper. China's copper imports were down 2% in December. Copper has lost 4% since last week.

Nirmal Bang advised to:

- Buy gold MCX February contract at Rs 20,385 per 10 grams, with a target of Rs 20,475 and keep a stoploss at Rs 20,325.
- Buy crude MCX January contract at Rs 4040 per barrel, with a target of Rs 4110 and keep a stoploss at Rs 3995