I. Precious Metals
Gold
Gold edged down on Wednesday on a firmer dollar. But the upward potential is limited on emerging selling positions from some EFTs. Bullion is expected to remain rangebound in the next one or two weeks. Spot gold was down 0.2 percent at $1,265.80 an ounce, below Tuesday's high of $1,273.97, the highest since June 14. A gauge of U.S. manufacturing activities fell from an almost three-year high as new orders slowed and consumer spending stagnated, suggesting moderate growth in the third quarter. Investors worried about the chances of the Federal Reserve raising interest rates in the coming months, unless seeing more signs of rising inflation.
On chart, gold is under mounting pressure, suggesting little likelihood for a breakthrough, and rising chances of pullback. The prices are expected to breach below the support of $1,264 to the next support of $1,255.

Silver
Silver fell 0.6 percent to $16.60 an ounce on Wednesday, extending losses to the third consecutive day after hitting the highest since June 29. Technically, silver found support at $16.50. A breach below $16.55 would trigger a downtrend in the medium term.

II. Commodities
Crude Oil
Oil prices edged higher on Wednesday on surging U.S. fuel demand. Weekly gasoline demand is estimated at a record high 9.842 million barrels. Crude inventories in the United States fell by 1.5 million barrels in the week to July 28, the Energy Information Administration said, about half the decline analysts had expected.
Brent crude futures ended the session up 1.1 percent at $52.36 a barrel after hitting a session low of $51.18. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.9 percent to settle at $49.59 a barrel, after falling to a low of $48.55 earlier in the session.
OPEC oil output rose in July to a 2017 high, a Reuters survey found, led by a further recovery in supply from Libya, one of the countries exempt from a production-cutting deal. Iran's oil exports also increased. Russia's oil output stood at 10.95 million barrels per day (bpd) in July, unchanged for a third month and in line with its pledge to curb production, government data showed on Wednesday. A supply glut is expected to sustain in the long run.

Copper
Copper ended up 0.1 percent at $6,352, lingering at highs for the second consecutive day after sharp gains last week. On technical front, prices are expected to keep strengthening in the near term with the long-term target price at $7,000. On fundamentals, encouraging economic data from China is the key driver behind this round of rally.

Soybean
U.S. soybean futures firmed on Wednesday, rebounding on bargain hunting from one-month lows set a day earlier. November soybeans ended up 5-3/4 cents at $9.77-1/2 a bushel. December soymeal rose $1 at $315.50 a short ton, while December soyoil rose 0.29 cents at 34.57 cents per lb. Mild weather forecasts for the heart of the U.S. Midwest crop belt pose headwinds for soybeans in the key pod-setting phase. Soybean production for this year was projected at 4.26 billion bushels on the basis of unit production of 48 bushels, the USDA said in July. The trading volume for soybean, soymeal and soyoil stood at 159,322, 76,278 and 89,734 lots respectively.

Dealing Room, ICBC Beijing Branch
Lv Yan