By Chanyaporn Chanjaroen Sept. 7 (Bloomberg) -- Commodities fell the most in a week as the dollar strengthened and after central banks in Japan and Australia said the outlook for U.S. growth is deteriorating. The S&P GSCI Commodity Index of 24 raw materials slid as much as 1.5 percent today, the biggest intraday fall since Aug. 31. Copper lost the most in seven weeks on the London Metal Exchange and New York-traded crude oil slid to the lowest level in almost a week. Japan’s central bank kept interest rates unchanged at 0.1 percent today, citing concerns over the U.S. economic outlook, while Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Glenn Stevens extended a pause in raising the main rate “with the global outlook remaining somewhat uncertain.” “Doubts over the U.S. economy have crept in amid statements by the Japanese and Australian central banks highlighting a deteriorating outlook for U.S. growth,” Walter de Wet, head of commodities research at Standard Bank Plc in London, wrote in a daily report. “This has dented demand for resources.” Crude oil for October delivery dropped as much as $1.93, or 2.6 percent, to $72.67 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the lowest intraday price since Sept. 1, and was at $73.06 at 1:25 p.m. London time. Three-month delivery copper lost as much as $212.75, or 2.8 percent, to $7,496.25 a metric ton, the biggest intraday loss since July 16. The S&P GSCI index has declined about 3 percent this year after surging 50 percent in 2009. Gains by the U.S. currency and concerns about potential economic slowdowns in China and the U.S. contributed to the loss. The nations are the biggest users of industrial metals and energy. ‘Growth Will Slow’ China’s slowdown in industrial output growth will deepen after the smallest increase in 11 months in July, a government forecast showed today. Production will gain about 10 percent in the second half of 2010 from a year earlier, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said at a briefing in Beijing today. That compares with July’s 13.4 percent and the 17.6 percent average for the first half of the year. August data are due next week. “Economic growth will slow further,” said Xin Guobin, the head of the ministry’s operation monitoring and coordination bureau. He cited real-estate and energy curbs, an uncertain outlook for exports, and a higher base for comparisons as reasons for smaller output gains. Federal Reserve policy makers have said they’re prepared to add monetary stimulus for the U.S., and last month set a $2.05 trillion floor for their securities portfolio. The Fed’s policy- setting Open Market Committee, led by Chairman Ben S. Bernanke, meets again in two weeks. Stronger Dollar The U.S. Dollar Index, a six-currency gauge of the greenback’s strength, added as much as 0.8 percent, the biggest gain since Aug. 20. Gains by the dollar make raw materials priced in the currency more expensive in terms of other monies. German factory orders unexpectedly fell 2.2 percent in July, the Economy Ministry in Berlin said today. That’s the biggest drop since February 2009. Economists forecast a 0.5 percent gain, according to the median of 40 estimates in a Bloomberg News survey. Evidence of slowing growth comes after the German economy expanded at the fastest pace in two decades in the second quarter, boosted by exports. An index of manufacturing fell in August and investor confidence dropped to a 16-month low. The euro fell as much as 1.1 percent against the dollar. Gold for immediate delivery, after sliding as much as 0.4 percent, gained 0.6 percent to $1,256.88 an ounce in London, the highest price since June 28. Bullion traded at a record $1,265.30 an ounce on June 21. European Debt Crisis “The European debt crisis could again start to play a more decisive role in the price of gold,” UBS analyst Edel Tully said today in a report. She also cited coin sales in “greater volumes than we’ve seen for a while.” The December-delivery wheat contract dropped as much as 14.25 cents, or 1.9 percent, to $7.27 a bushel in Chicago, the worst loss this month. Sugar gained. White, or refined, sweetener, for December delivery added $3.90, or 0.7 percent, to $552.80 a metric ton on NYSE Liffe in London. To contact the reporter on this story: Chanyaporn Chanjaroen in London at cchanjaroen@bloomberg.net.

Source