Platinum Futures Drop Amid Signs Euro Region Demand May Decline

By Dave McCombs

Oct. 15 (Bloomberg) -- Platinum futures in Tokyo declined for the second time in three days after a drop in industrial production in Europe added to concerns that a global recession will cut demand for the metal's use in auto exhaust systems.

Industrial production in the 15 nations that use the euro fell 0.7 percent in August from a year earlier, the European Union's statistics office said yesterday.

A drop in the euro region output ``would also indicate ongoing demand decline for platinum and palladium in this economy,'' Walter de Wet, an analyst at Standard Bank Plc in Johannesburg, wrote in a note to clients dated yesterday.

Platinum for August delivery slumped 4.9 percent to 3,224 yen a gram ($990 an ounce) at the 11 a.m. break on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange. The metal for immediate delivery added $2.50 to $1,030 an ounce at 11:59 p.m. in Tokyo, a 0.2 percent advance from New York yesterday.

To contact the reporter for this story: Dave McCombs in Tokyo at dmccombs@bloomberg.net