Tin Drop Unsettles Metals

The collapse in the price of tin in London sparked nervousness among metals traders Friday, pressuring copper futures prices and leading to nearly unchanged silver prices in trading on the New York Commodity Exchange.

The tin crisis had little impact on gold futures prices, which advanced slightly.

“What it’s done is discourage participation in copper,” said Steve Platt, a metals analyst for Heinold Commodities in Chicago. “There’s some concern there could be some spillover” into other commodities, he said. The tin situation also led some silver traders to sideline themselves, analysts said.

“There was very little activity in gold” and few outside developments to influence prices, said Jack Barbanel, a metals analyst with Gruntal & Co. in New York.

Cattle and hog futures prices were mixed while pork bellies fell in trading on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. Both markets were quiet as traders evened up their positions pending the release of USDA inventory reports after the close of trading, analysts said.

Corn and soybeans were mostly lower, while wheat advanced in trading on the Chicago Board of Trade.