A Bit Tarnished

摘要

One of the main selling points of commodities, according to the financiers who have been cheering their vertiginous ascent over the past few years, is that they do not move in lockstep with other assets. And so it had seemed in recent months, as commodity prices continued to climb even as disaster struck property, shares and bonds. Yet on March 17th the turmoil on Wall Street finally spread to the commodities markets.rnOn that day, oil set a new record of $111.80 a barrel before falling to $103.23 at one point-the biggest drop during a single day in 17 years. It was not alone: Goldman Sachs's main commodity index fell by over 4%. At the Chicago Board of Trade, wheat, maize (corn) and soyabean futures fell by as much as the exchange's rules permit. The price of coffee dropped by 11%. Although most commodities recovered the next day, the episode did call into question their status as a haven.