WTI Crude falls to fresh four-month lows, amid U.S. oil rig build

WTI crude extended its recent slide on Friday falling to fresh four-month lows, amid a significant build in U.S. oil rigs last week.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, WTI crude for September delivery traded between $47.74 and $49.02 a barrel before settling at 48.17, down 0.29 or 0.59%. At one point, Texas Long Sweet futures fell to its lowest level since early-April. U.S. crude futures have closed lower on seven of the last eight sessions and have declined by approximately 23% over the last month, as concerns related to global oversupply and the widespread ramifications of the Iranian Nuclear deal have weighed.
On the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), brent crude for September delivery wavered between $54.30 and $55.59 before settling at 54.61, down 0.66 or 1.17%. The spread between the U.S. and international benchmarks of crude stood at 6.44, below Thursday's level of 6.81 at the close.
Oil services firm Baker Hughes (NYSE:BHI) said in its weekly rig count on Friday that U.S. oil rigs last week soared by 21 to 659. A week earlier, the rig count fell mildly by seven to 638. The minor decline was preceded by two weeks of builds, after 29 consecutive weeks of draws. The count is down sharply from its level last fall when it peaked above 1,500.
Energy analysts, however, are placing less stock in the rig count in comparison with recent years, as U.S. shale producers find creative ways to drill efficiently while removing less effective rigs. Earlier this week, U.S. crude output remained around 9.55 million barrels per day near its highest levels in more than 40 years.

Gold prices drop sharply in Asia on weak flash China PMI, market turmoil

Gold prices fell hard in Asia on Friday as investors see a slowdown in China manufacturing as ensuring continued easy policy by one of the world's top yellow metal buyers and as continued to assess the scope for a Federal Reserve rate hike in September and geopolitical tension appears eased for now.
The Markit/Caixin survey of China manufacturing showed a decline to 48.2 a 15-month-low, and well below the expected 49.7 and off from June's final of 49.4. Final data is due in August.
The flash reading suggests manufacturing conditions may be deteriorating and will raise questions about the resilience of the economic recovery despite Beijing's confidence for a better second half.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold for August delivery fell 1.43% at $1,0878.40 a troy ounce.
Silver for September delivery dropped 1.31% to $14.508 a troy ounce.
Copper for September delivery eased 0.39% to $2.367 a pound.
Otherwise, China markets were relatively calm following a report in the UK press that $800 billion has fled the country as a systemic crisis brews.
London's Daily Telegraph cited research reports showing a "frighteningly large" $800 billion has flowed out of China over the past year, as the forces which saw Chinese reserves top out at nearly $4 trillion unwind at a rapid and dangerous pace.
Overnight, gold futures inched up on Thursday amid a weaker dollar, halting a 10-day losing streak – its longest in nearly two decades.
A session earlier, gold futures plunged more than 1% to close under $1,100 for the first time in more than five years. Previously, the precious metal closed lower in every session dating back to July 9. The extended skid tied a 10-day losing streak in 1996 for the longest slide during the period.

Gold extends losing skid to nine, one day after falling to 5-yr low

One day after crashing more than 2.2% to fresh five-year lows, gold futures inched down on Tuesday for its ninth straight loss in spite of a retreating dollar.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold for August delivery traded in a tight range between 1,098.30 and 1,108.60 before closing at 1,106.00, down 0.80 or 0.07% on the session. Gold futures are down approximately 8% since peaking above $1,200 an ounce in late-June.
On Monday, gold plunged more than 5% in a matter of minutes in early morning Asian trade when it fell below $1,120, triggering a fresh batch of sell orders. Over the weekend, the People's Bank of China tightened regulations on internet financing in further efforts to bolster its crashing equities markets. In recent weeks, Chinese investors have lost approximately $3 trillion in the stock market amid the slowest growth in the world's second-largest economy in over a decade.
The stimulus measures came hours after China released data on its gold holdings for the first time since 2009. While Chinese gold holdings surged about 60% to 1,658 metric tons over the six-year span, the figure still pales in comparison to the nation's increasing stockpile in foreign exchange reserves. Chinese gold reserves represent only 1.5% of its forex reserves, dampening optimism that the world's second-largest economy can provide a further boost to the global gold market.
China is the world's largest producer and second-largest consumer of gold behind India. On Tuesday, Au99.95% on the Shanghai Gold Exchange fell mildly by 2.1 yuan to 221.36 a kilogram.