LONDON: A camid a backdrop of ample supplies sent the prices of oil, most metals and coffee sliding this week, analysts said.
The dollar, which had been rising strongly since Thursday after the European Central Bank surprisingly cut its main eurozone interest rate, extended its gains heading into the weekend on rising expectations that the Federal Reserve will shortly begin tapering its stimulus.
The prospect of the US central bank bringing forward the gradual reduction of its $85 billion-a-month monetary stimulus programme increased on Friday after official data showed that the US economy had added a surprise 204,000 jobs in October despite the government shutdown.
OIL: Crude futures hit multi-month low points owing to a strengthening dollar, hopes of a deal over Iran's nuclear standoff and as a result of high US stockpiles, analysts said.
New York prices on Tuesday hit five-month lows at $93.37 a barrel amid rising US crude inventories. Brent on Friday struck a four-month trough at $102.98 a barrel.
Better-than-expected US economic growth and jobs data supported market expectations that the Fed will soon roll back its stimulus.
Official data showed that the US economy grew at an annual rate of 2.8 percent in July-September, well above the 1.9 percent projected by analysts and representing the strongest pace of growth in a year.
Brent crude had already struck four-month lows on Thursday as the dollar soared against the euro after the European Central Bank cut its main interest rate.
This made dollar-denominated crude more expensive for holders of other currencies, denting demand but in turn pushing prices lower.
The ECB cut its main interest rate by a quarter-point to a record low of 0.25 percent in the face of deflationary pressures in the euro area.
WTI prices have meanwhile come off five-month low points -- the results of a steady climb in US commercial inventories since September.
The Department of Energy on Wednesday said that US crude inventories grew by 1.6 million barrels last week, less than expectations for a rise of 1.9 million.
Nevertheless, it was a seventh straight week of rising crude stockpiles, again indicating soft demand in the world's biggest economy.
By Friday on London's Intercontinental Exchange, Brent North Sea crude for delivery in December slid to $104.47 a barrel from $108.63 a week earlier.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, West Texas Intermediate or light sweet crude for December retreated to $94.44 a barrel from $96.23.
Stronger dollar knocks metals :
PRECIOUS METALS: Gold prices were hit by the stronger dollar and rising expectations that the Federal Reserve will shortly begin cutting its economic stimulus programme.
"Traders dropped gold like a lead balloon after the (US) jobs data, due to fears that the Federal Reserve will begin tapering its stimulus package," said David Madden, market analyst at traders IG.
The jobs creation data was strong enough to spark a fresh burst of confidence among economists, who suggested it could be enough to provoke the Federal Reserve into cutting back its stimulus as early as December.
The Fed has focused its policy decisions on the pace of hiring and the fall in the jobless rate though it has also shown concern over the drop in labour force participation.
Palladium, used in catalytic converters, grew over the week thanks to strong car sales in the United States, traders said.
By late Friday on the London Bullion Market, the price of gold dropped to $1,285.50 an ounce from $1,306.75 a week earlier.
Silver fell to $21.70 an ounce from $21.75.
On the London Platinum and Palladium Market, platinum slipped to $1,446 an ounce from $1,453.
Palladium grew to $757 an ounce from $737.
BASE METALS: Industrial metals fell owing to a stronger dollar.
"The ECB rate cut came as a surprise. Questions are once again being asked about the strength of the eurozone economic recovery. This, combined with the stronger dollar, has put base metals largely on the back foot despite the better-than-expected US Q3 GDP data," said Standard Bank analyst Walter de Wet.
The London Metal Exchange meanwhile on Thursday unveiled a plan to expedite deliveries of its traded base metals, in particular aluminium, and to improve its market credibility.
LME-registered warehouses with outgoing-delivery delays of 50 days or more will have to ship out more metal than they receive, according to the key change that will come into effect in April.
"If you have a queue of over 50 days and you choose to keep loading into the warehouse, then you will be required to adjust your load out so you load out more than you load in," said Matt Chamberlain, LME Head of Business Development.
"Mathematically the effect will be to shrink stocks and eventually queues."
By Friday on the London Metal Exchange, copper for delivery in three months dropped to $7,115 a tonne from $7,289.25 a week earlier.
Three-month aluminium slid to $1,803.75 a tonne from $1,871
Three-month lead decreased to $2,128 a tonne from $2,202.50.
Three-month tin slipped to $22,850 a tonne from $22,925.
Three-month nickel declined to $13,912 a tonne from $14,668.
Three-month zinc retreated to $1,891 a tonne from $1,960.75
Coffee weakens further:
COFFEE: Arabic coffee struck 100.95 US cents a pound, the lowest level since October 2006 on bumper harvest prospects.
Robusta slumped to $1,431 a tonne, a trough last reached three and a half years ago.
"The prospect of a record coffee crop in Brazil is continuing to weigh on prices," said analysts at Commerzbank. A harvest of 60 million bags is expected in the coming crop year.
"What is more, Colombia also looks set to reap a much better harvest. In Vietnam, the world's biggest producer of Robusta, the coffee harvest got underway last month," they added in a note to clients.
By Friday on the ICE Futures US exchange in New York, Arabica for delivery in December had fallen to 103.70 US cents a pound from 105.05 cents a week earlier.
On LIFFE, London's futures exchange, Robusta for January stood at $1,457 a tonne, unchanged from a week earlier.
SUGAR: Prices extended recent losses.
"Prices could continue to work lower in the short term. There is still a lot of sugar available to the world market despite the logistical problems in Brazil," said Jack Scoville, analyst at Price Futures Group.
By Friday on the ICE Futures US exchange, the price of unrefined sugar for delivery in March 2014 dropped to 18.08 US cents a pound from 18.34 cents a week earlier.
On LIFFE, the price of a tonne of white sugar for March slid to $481.50 from $488 a week earlier.
COCOA: Prices rebounded on falling stockpiles, analysts said.
Commerzbank said "stocks on the ICE-US exchange have declined to a ten-month low, which is being viewed as an indication of robust demand".
They added: "What is more, Indonesia the world's third-largest cocoa producer has reported that October saw only just less than half of the previous month's quantity of cocoa delivered from its main Sulawesi growing region to the export terminals."
By Friday on LIFFE, cocoa for delivery in March 2014 grew to £1,706 a tonne from £1,689 a week earlier.
On ICE Futures US, cocoa for December climbed to $2,667 a tonne from $2,653 a week earlier.
GRAINS AND SOYA: Maize and wheat fell, while soya rose.
By Friday on the Chicago Board of Trade, January-dated soyabean meal used in animal feed climbed to $12.72 a bushel from $12.51 a week earlier.
Maize for delivery in December fell to $4.16 a bushel from $4.27.
Wheat for December dropped to $6.53 a bushel from $6.67.
RUBBER: Prices rebounded, with support from tight supplies on wet weather in Malaysia.
The Malaysian Rubber Board's benchmark SMR20 rose to 229.15 US cents a kilo from 226.35 cents the previous week.
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