LONDON, March 2: Commodity prices mostly slid this week on worsening economic sentiment caused by political deadlock in indebted eurozone nation Italy and as the United States braces for $85 billion in budget cuts.

Oil: World crude prices reached multi-week low points as traders sought safety amid political turmoil in Italy, mixed economic data out of the US and China, and as dealers eyed the huge US spending cuts that kicked in on Friday.

New York crude oil on Friday sank to $90.29 a barrel — the lowest level since the end of 2012. At the same time, Brent North Sea crude reached a six-week low at $109.82.

“There is no fundamental justification for the price slide on the oil market, which appears to be sentiment-driven,” said Commerzbank commodities analyst Carsten Fritsch.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) or light sweet crude for April dropped to $90.60 a barrel compared with $93.02.

Precious metals: The price of gold recovered from seven-month lows of under $1,600 an ounce struck the previous week after the US Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke said the Fed’s stimulus programme would continue.

Gold is seen as a good hedge against inflation, while stimulating the economy with new cash can push up inflation and weaken the dollar, according to experts.

By late on Friday on the London Bullion Market, the price of gold edged up to $1,582.25 an ounce from $1,576.50 a week earlier.

Silver dropped to $28.01 an ounce from $28.79.

On the London Platinum and Palladium Market, platinum fell to $1,579 an ounce from $1,611. Palladium slipped to $721 an ounce from $732.

Base metals: Base metal prices mostly dropped, gaining “little support from the mostly positive US data and reassurance from Bernanke” on stimulus, said BNP Paribas analyst Stephen Briggs.

By late on Friday on the London Metal Exchange, copper for delivery in three months slid to $7,722 a ton from $7,808 a week earlier.

Three-month aluminium dropped to $1,964 a ton from $2,049.

Three-month lead fell to $2,247 a ton from $2,316.

Three-month tin grew to $23,235 a ton from $23,190.

Three-month nickel slipped to $16,700 a ton from $16,734.

Three-month zinc retreated to $2,027 a ton from $2,088.

Cocoa: Futures fell on a high supply situation in main producer Ivory Coast. “The plentiful supply is weighing on the price,” said analyst Fritsch.

By Friday on LIFFE, London’s futures exchange, cocoa for delivery in May dipped to £1,430 a ton from £1,434 a week earlier.

On New York’s NYBOT-ICE exchange, cocoa for May dropped to $2,127 a ton from $2,147.

Coffee: Futures rose after thousands of Colombian coffee growers staged protests around the country to press for more government support in the face of low prices.

By Friday on LIFFE, Robusta for May delivery grew to $2,107 a ton from $2,090 a week earlier. On NYBOT-ICE, Arabica for delivery in May rose to 143.65 US cents a pound from 143.15 cents.

Sugar: Prices climbed on expectations of higher production of ethanol, a cheaper alternative to gasoline that is made using sugar, analysts said. By Friday on LIFFE, the price of a ton of white sugar for delivery in May climbed to $520.40 from $501.90 a week earlier.

On NYBOT-ICE, the price of unrefined sugar for May increased to 18.34 US cents a pound from 18.05 cents.

Rubber: Prices extended recent losses on renewed uncertainty over the eurozone debt crisis and news of record high stockpiles in China, traders said.

The Malaysian Rubber Board’s benchmark SMR20 dropped to 289.00 US cents a kilo from 292.40 cents the previous week.—AFP