Metals prices mixed on supply, strike worries

In the metals markets this week, gold dropped 2.4 percent to $630.1 per troy ounce as the US dollar strengthened. In base metals, nickel ended the week at $34,200 per tonne as London Metal Exchange stockpiles stood at a mere 4,320 tonnes. Aluminium was 0.4 percent higher on the week to $2,828 per tonne. Tin prices were higher as well, gaining 2.8 percent to $11,100 per tonne, on supply uncertainties. The price of zinc dropped 1.2 percent to $4,345 per tonne even though less than three days worth of global consumption remain in LME warehouses. Copper, meanwhile, fell 1.9 percent to $6,865 per tonne despite the possibility of a strike at an Xstrata smelter in Chile.