I. Precious Metals
Gold
Gold fell nearly 1 percent, down for a second day on Tuesday after better-than-expected U.S. economic data and easing tensions over North Korea encouraged investors to buy riskier assets, boosting stocks, the U.S. dollar and bond yields.
Gold rose to a two-month high of $1,291.86 on Friday after a week of escalating military threats between Washington and Pyongyang. But fears of conflict eased when North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Tuesday signalled he would delay a decision on firing missiles towards Guam, a U.S. territory in the Pacific.
Gold's fall accelerated after strong U.S. retail sales in July and strength in an index of business conditions in New York state suggested strong economic growth. The dollar rose to near a three-week high against a basket of currencies on Tuesday. Spot gold was down 0.8 percent at $1,271.58 an ounce, taking losses since Friday's high to nearly 2 percent. Investors await minutes from the Fed's July meeting to be released on Wednesday for clues on when a rate hike is next likely.
On technical front, gold fell for the second straight day, suggesting heavy resistance of key technical level. Currently at $1,272.13, a seesaw can be seen around technical Fibonacci supports. A further retreat will move down the next support to the 100-day moving average of $1,255. Bullion is expected to remain on track the range between $1,200 to $1,300.

Silver
Silver underperformed gold on Tuesday. It was down 2.1 percent at $16.65 an ounce, falling below its 100- and 200-day moving averages, and moved down quickly to the support of the 50-day moving average at $16.51. The level will provide some support in the near term. Once breached, the next support can be found at $16.

II. Commodities
Crude Oil
Oil prices settled little changed on Tuesday after slumping to three-week lows as the U.S. dollar climbed and signs of weaker petroleum demand in China weighed the market down for a second day. Benchmark Brent crude settled up 7 cents a barrel at $50.80, after retreating to $50.02 during the session. U.S. light crude settled down 4 cents at $47.55, off a session low of $47.02, the lowest since July 25.
Brent and U.S. crude reached two-month highs in early August but have slid over the last few days, dropping more than 2.5 percent on Monday. The dollar rose to its highest in nearly three weeks against a basket of major currencies, pressuring crude prices. Chinese oil refineries operated in July at their slowest daily rates since September, official data showed. The drop was steeper than expected, raising concerns over the state of Chinese demand and the level of domestic stocks.
On chart, U.S. crude held below the 100-day moving average, with the MACD index still showing heavy downward pressure. In the near term, support can be found at the 50-day moving average of $46.45. We maintain our view that U.S. crude prices will remain with the range of $42-52.

Copper
Three-month LME copper dipped 0.3 percent to finish at $6,379. Prices hit their highest in more than 2-1/2 years on Aug. 9 at $6,515. Data showed that Chinese new loans last month came in at 825.5 billion yuan, higher than analyst forecasts of 800 billion, calming investor nerves after a cooling of the property market and weak industrial output. Some market participants saw a relatively balanced market, believing that metal prices would test recent highs once again after consolidations.

Soybean
Chicago Board of Trade soybean futures declined more than 1 percent on Tuesday as rainfall this week boosted yield prospects for U.S. crops in the wake of a government forecast last week for a record-large soybean harvest, traders said. Most-active CBOT November soybeans fell to the lowest levels since June 30, further pressured by declines of about 2 percent in corn futures. The U.S. Department of Agriculture earlier said exporters sold 264,000 tonnes of U.S. soybeans for delivery in the 2017-18 marketing year. CBOT November soybean futures finished 14 cents lower at $9.24-1/4 per bushel.

Dealing Room, ICBC Beijing Branch
Li Nan