Platinum Futures Drop as Equities Plunge Prompts Shift to Cash

By Dave McCombs

Oct. 10 (Bloomberg) -- Platinum futures in Tokyo fell for the third time this week as Asian equities plunged toward the worst week since 1987, prompting investors to shift into cash.

The metal has dropped 21 percent since Sept. 15, the day Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. filed for bankruptcy. Yamato Life Insurance Co., a Japanese insurer, today filed for court protection from creditors in the nation's first bankruptcy in the industry in seven years.

``Investors need cash only,'' Kazuhiko Saito, a commodity strategist at Interes Capital Management, said by phone today in Tokyo. ``They are liquidating everything.''

Platinum for August delivery sank 2.8 percent to 3,166 yen a gram ($995 an ounce) at 12:40 p.m. on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange. The most-active contract on Oct. 8 sank to 2,986 yen a gram, the lowest since June 15, 2005.

The metal may drop to 2,200 yen a gram next week, Saito said. The plunge would make platinum cheaper than gold for the first time since 1987. Gold futures may decline to 2,700 yen an ounce next week, dragged down by a strengthening Japanese currency, Saito said.

Gold for August delivery was unchanged at 2,883 yen at 12:41 p.m. on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange.

Platinum for immediate delivery sank $19 to $1,011.50 an ounce at 12:12 p.m. in Tokyo, a 1.8 percent drop from New York yesterday.

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