NEW YORK, July 12 (Reuters) – Citing improved end-market
demand, Alcoa Inc (AA.N: Quote, Profile, Research) increased its outlook for 2010 global
aluminum consumption on Monday, with China, not surprisingly,
expected to grab the lion’s share of global supply.

“China is obviously an important market, but also an
important market for Alcoa. We have sales of around $1 billion
in China. If you look at the last five years, we’ve had average
growth rates of around 29 percent in that market,” Chairman and
Chief Executive Officer Klaus Kleinfeld said on Monday.

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Gold prices recovered from early losses late Wednesday, rising from a 6-week low to above $1,200 an ounce, as equity markets rallied, the euro renewed its advance on the dollar and a corrective decline was seen to have run its course.

Gold’s technical losses were viewed as therapeutic, shaking out players with weak long positions and dropping prices to levels where fresh demand could emerge after the precious metal’s June 21 rise to record highs, analysts said.

NEW YORK, June 23 (Reuters) – Looking at economic
fundamentals, expect a bit of a slowdown in U.S. steel demand
over the next six months, Daniel DiMicco Chairman, CEO and
President of Nucor Corp. (NUE.N: Quote, Profile, Research), said on Wednesday.

Speaking with Reuters on the sidelines of the American
Metal Market’s 25th Steel Success Strategies conference about
the outlook for Nucor’s orders in the 2010 second half, DiMicco
said, “Nucor goes with its customer orders.”

NEW YORK, June 22 (Reuters) – United States Steel Corp
(X.N: Quote, Profile, Research), one of the largest U.S. steel producers, thinks the
worst of the steel industry’s downturn is over, but sees the
high cost of raw materials used to produce the metal as having
an inhibiting impact on profitability.

“The overwhelming dynamic affecting the pace and level of
our industry’s return to profitability today is the state of
the raw materials markets,” Chief Executive Officer John Surma
told American Metal Market’s 25th Steel Success Strategies
conference on Tuesday.

NEW YORK, June 22 (Reuters) – ArcelorMittal (ISPA.AS: Quote, Profile, Research), the
world’s largest steel maker, said on Tuesday that apparent and
real demand for steel remains positive in the second quarter in
the United States and Europe, but would be slower in the second
half of the year.

“I still believe we will have 10 percent growth in global
(steel) demand this year,” Lakshmi Mittal, chairman and chief
executive of ArcelorMittal, said at American Metal Market’s
25th Steel Success Strategies conference.

NEW YORK/LONDON (Reuters) – Gold rallied on Friday to an all-time record above $1,260 an ounce, as investors looked to precious metals for an alternative to equity or debt investments given renewed uncertainty about the economic recovery.

Several surprisingly weak U.S. economic readings released a day earlier renewed investors worries, driving them to seek the safety of a tangible asset like gold.

NEW YORK/LONDON (Reuters) – Gold bullion came just short of its all-time high and U.S. gold futures ran up to their highest close ever on Thursday on both concern over Europe’s credit problems and downbeat U.S. data which encouraged a fresh sweep into safe-haven assets.

Euro strength also propelled gold’s advance after European ministers jointly backed the publication of so-called bank “stress tests,” along with a successful Spanish bond auction.

NEW YORK/LONDON (Reuters) – Gold drifted lower on Wednesday as some short-term investors took profits off the early rise to a one-week high above $1,237 an ounce, but declines in the euro and in U.S. share prices hit the yellow metal in late trade.

Spot gold slipped to $1,231.45 an ounce by 2:29 p.m. EDT from $1,232.45 an ounce in late Tuesday trade in New York. U.S. gold futures for August delivery ended $3.90 lower at $1,230.50 an ounce.

NEW YORK/LONDON (Reuters) – Gold rallied on Tuesday after a ratings downgrade of Greece reignited fears of a worsening fiscal crisis and lifted interest in the metal as a shield against instability in the wider markets.

Spot gold moved up to $1,233.55 an ounce by 3:30 EDT, against $1,220.15 late in New York on Monday. U.S. gold futures for August delivery finished $9.90 higher at $1,234.40 an ounce, after earlier touching its a one-week peak at $1,237.

NEW YORK/LONDON (Reuters) – Gold rose on Friday, rebounding from early losses after weaker-than-expected U.S. employment data pushed the stock market and many commodities sharply lower, raising the safe-havens bid for bullion.

“With the employment numbers coming short of expectations and the majority of jobs being census workers rather than private payrolls, I think it shows there’s a chance the economy is not recovering as fast as previously believed,” said Tom Pawlicki, precious metals analyst at MF Global in Chicago.