Market pulse for several metals and energy: Mangal Keshav

Gold futures closed slightly higher on COMEX, recouping part of the loss they saw in the previous session; however prices in the Indian markets closed in negative due to local currency appreciation.

Gold holdings of SPDR gold trust, the largest ETF backed by the precious metal, declined to 1,236.31 tons, as on March 12.
Silver holdings of ishares silver trust, the largest ETF backed by the metal, increased to 10,703.6 tons, as on March 12.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six other currencies, closed around 82.605, down from 82.936 in late North American trading on Wednesday.

The dollar rose to a 7-month high against a basket of currencies and a 3-month peak versus the euro on Thursday as positive US data contrasted with economic and political concerns in the euro zone.

Copper closed on a flat note, as improved risk appetite after solid US economic data was balanced by a stronger dollar and weak demand in top consumer China amid ample domestic supplies.

Copper futures for May delivery closed up by 0.3% at $3.5365 on the COMEX division of the NYMEX. Copper stockpiles monitored by the LME, are up at the highest level since March 2010 & rose for the 21st session to 522,250 tons.

Nickel was the best performer, closing with gains on more than 1.5% after LME inventory data showed around 3,000 tons of warrant cancellations as investors prepared to remove material from warehouses in Rotterdam.

Crude oil traded positively, as investors weighed the outlook for the market following positive US economic data and a forecast for lower global demand growth.

Brent crude oil prices rose toward $110 per barrel on Thursday, rebounding after four days of losses, on reports of a recovery in the US labor market.

Natural gas futures jumped 3.6% to close at a 16-week high of $3.812 per mmbtu, after government data showed inventories dropped by more than expected last week. Natural gas storage dropped by 145bn cubic feet to 1.938 trillion cubic feet on March 8, 18.5% below the year-earlier level and 11.4% above the five-year average.