Materials Flat as Commodities Rebound Wavers -- Materials Roundup

Shares of miners and other commodities processors were more or less flat as the rebound from the commodities bust wavered. The price of oil neared $45 a barrel, eroding hopes that it had stabilised in the $50-a-barrel range. Meanwhile, copper futures hit their lowest level of the year, as hopes for infrastructure spending in China faded. In the interests of financial stability, Chinese regulators could crack down on the credit used for infrastructure projects. Gold futures had one of their biggest drops of the year as the House of Representatives success in passing a health-care bill was seen as foreshadowing progress on tax and budget bills. That could embolden the Federal Reserve, strengthening the dollar and weigh on gold, which traditionally has an inverse correlation to the greenback.

-Rob Curran, rob.curran@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 04, 2017 16:43 ET (20:43 GMT)