Oil trades near 3-day high in US as refineries resume work

PUNE: Oil traded near the highest level in three days in New York as US East Coast refineries resumed operations in the aftermath of Atlantic superstorm Sandy, increasing crude demand.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures were little changed after rising 0.7% on Wednesday. Crude for December delivery was at $86.32 a barrel in electronic trading on the Nymex, up 8 cents, at 9:34 am in London. Futures are down 13% this year.

Brent oil for December settlement on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange was at $108.44 a barrel, down 26 cents. The contract earlier dropped as much as 0.5% and has fallen the past three days. The European benchmark crude was at a $22.15 premium to WTI, from $22.46 on Thursday.

Gold traded flat on Thursday, shrugging off data showing China's economy was perking up, as investors looking for more clarity on the global economy focused instead on US employment data due on Friday. Gold had climbed to near $1,800 an ounce in early October after aggressive stimulus measures announced by central banks including the US Federal Reserve and European Central Bank fuelled a rally.

Spot gold was nearly flat at $1,721.41 an ounce by 0656 GMT, after hitting a one-week high of $1,725.55 in the previous session. US gold inched up 0.2% to $1,722.10.

Rupee closed at 53.70 against dollar on Thursday. Indian gold prices are generally determined by international prices.

During festival seasons, local demand and currency movement also influence the prices to some extent. The rupee plays an important role in determining the landed cost of the dollar-quoted yellow metal.

Chana (chick pea) futures fell for a fourth straight session on Thursday as a drop in domestic demand, likely higher imports and prospects of increased sowing weighed on sentiments. Thee November contract on the NCDEX was down 1.19% at Rs 4,647/quintal

Jeera futures fell on Thursday, tracking bearish cues from spot markets where higher domestic supplies dampened demand while weak exports also weighed. The November jeera contract on the NCDEX was 1.4% lower at Rs 14.110/quintal.

Indian pepper futures fell on weak overseas demand and better crop prospects though lower domestic supplies and depleting stocks kept the downside limited.

The most-active November contract on the NCDEX was down 0.4% at Rs 42,800/quintal.

Turmeric futures rose due to lower domestic supplies and some improvement in local buying, though mounting stocks weighed on sentiments. The November turmeric contract on the NCDEX last traded at Rs 5,128/quintal.

The NCDEX sugar contract for November delivery was up 0.09% at Rs 3,394/quintal.

Palm oil climbed the most in more than a week after improved manufacturing data from China buoyed speculation that the economy is picking up in the second-largest buyer. The contract for January delivery advanced 1.6% to 2,537 ringgit ($831) a tonne on the Malaysia Derivatives Exchange, the biggest gain at close since October 22.

Most-active prices dropped in October for a second straight month.

Palm oil for May delivery climbed 0.4% to close at 7,074 yuan ($1,134) a tonne on the Dalian Commodity Exchange. Soyabean oil for delivery in the same month rose 0.5% to end at 9,118 yuan a tonne.