(raw materials / closing price /% change)

Light Crude 85.07 -0.78%

Gold 1,236.20 +0.50%

Brent crude headed for the lowest close in almost four years after Iraq followed Saudi Arabia and Iran in cutting prices. West Texas Intermediate dropped.

Iraq, OPEC's second-biggest producer, will sell its Basrah Light crude to Asia at the biggest discount since January 2009, the country's State Oil Marketing Co., known as SOMO, said yesterday. Iran last week said it will sell oil to Asia in November at the biggest discount in almost six years, matching cuts by Saudi Arabia.

"OPEC is not ready to act and that's making people continue to sell," said Michael Lynch, president of Strategic Energy & Economic Research in Winchester, Massachusetts. "Until we see some comments out of OPEC suggesting they are going to stabilize the price, I think the market will probably keep falling."

Brent for November settlement slid $1.83, or 2 percent, to $88.38 a barrel at 10:22 a.m. New York time on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange. A settlement at this level would be the lowest since November 2010. The volume of all futures was 39 percent above the 100-day average. Prices are down 23 percent from this year's highest close of $115.06 on June 19.

WTI for November delivery dropped $1.15, or 1.3 percent, to $84.67 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Volume was 16 percent above the 100-day average. The U.S. benchmark crude was at a discount of $3.70 to Brent. It closed at $4.39 on Oct. 10.

The price of gold reached a four-week high amid downturn in the equity markets and the dollar, as investors prefer low-risk assets, fearing for the stability of the global economic growth.

Asian stock markets during trading fell to seven-month low, while oil prices are close to a minimum of four years.

"With the decline of the dollar and the stock price, as well as comments from Fed officials over the weekend, which were perceived as favorable gold prices may continue to rise. We expect to increase to $ 1.240-1.250, but at this rate we will sell," - said a trader at precious metals in Hong Kong.

Fed officials expressed concern about the state of the world economy, forcing analysts to revise the forecast rise in interest rates. The delay in the rate increase is positive for the gold market, non-interest bearing.

"This week, gold will affect the stock markets and the dollar. We believe that these markets will continue to decline in the near future, giving support to the quotations of gold," - said analyst Edward Meir INTL FCStone.

The world's largest reserves of the gold-exchange-traded fund SPDR Gold Trust on Friday fell by 2.64 tonnes to 759.44 tonnes - the lowest level since December 2008.

Singapore on Monday began trading 25 killogramovymi contracts for gold to set the indicative price for the region. The most traded contract expiring on Tuesday, at the close of trading on the Singapore Exchange was worth $ 39,685 per gram, or $ 1.234,20 an ounce.

The cost of the December gold futures on the COMEX today rose to 1238.00 dollars per ounce.