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Batuk Gathani

London , Sept. 8

IN August, commodity prices surged to a record 24-year high; India and China were commonly identified as the driving force behind copper, crude and gold rally. Today, the gold price has hit a record high, and the two Asian countries have helped gold sales to a glittering $38-billion mark.

The World Gold Council here stated that the record figure for the 12 months up to June 2005 was driven by favourable conditions in key markets (India, the US and China — in order of demand) and wide promotion of the metal in jewellery making.

The current Chinese and India rage for oil has also overwhelmed the markets. China, today, imports half of its oil consumption and according to current projections, will be consuming 14.2 million barrels of oil a day in 2025. India imports nearly two-thirds of its oil and by 2025 may hit the five-million-barrels-a-day mark compared to 1.4 million barrels.

China will consume three times more oil than India because of the strength, size and vibrancy of its economy which, according to current estimates, could grow by 10 per cent per annum, compared to India's six per cent growth. The US economy is growing by four per cent per year, while the European Union's growth rate is almost half of that of the US.

Analysts and commodity traders have breathed a sigh of relief as latest indications suggest a downward correction particularly in oil prices and key commodity prices. The oil is now trading at $62.89 a barrel for October delivery and the forebodings of $70 a barrel, widely predicted only last month, have been unfounded.

The high oil prices at retail gas stations in the US and Western Europe have affected the profit and investment performance of small and medium-sized companies.

Heating oil prices in Europe will be 30 per cent higher this winter.

China is the world's biggest copper buyer and latest figures display a rise of nearly four per cent. India's usage of copper also rose by 12 per cent. Copper, zinc, gold and oil prices are rated as "steady and satisfactory", provided there is no "supply turbulence" in the immediate future.

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