If the fund buying is strong enough, it could lift prices to that target ($600) a lot quicker than we think.

The main story is still fund money. Stocks are low.

The market remains fund-driven. No one wants to go short while consumers buy in dips and producers are reluctant to sell, hoping for yet higher prices.

We are in a new ball game – a new paradigm. You just have to go with the flow now.

The ( zinc ) concentrate market is already so tight, this is the last thing the market needs.

An unprecedented amount of new fund money has been attracted to the LME by virtue of index buying (commodity indices) and structured products.

Against this background, speculative buying underpinned a rise in prices.

Speculators and investors have the precious metals market in their tight grip and are just forcing prices higher.

Funds are still keen, with the end of the month likely to bring even more money to commodities due to the good performance they’ve had during January. It’s a self-fulfilling prophecy at the moment.

Looking forward, we expect prices to remain underpinned at current levels by robust physical demand with consumers going into the second quarter, the peak demand season, holding low inventory and concerned by…supply.

Correction? What correction? With the shorter-term players locking in profits and systematic CTA (Commodity Trade Adviser fund) selling met by trade and hedge fund buying, base metals have stabilized after a volatile 24 to 48...

However, the market may be prone to wide trading ranges and choppy price movements while current consolidation continues, with more liquidation possible in the absence of upside momentum.

Furthermore, with the market in deficit for the past three consecutive years, industry stocks are below critically low levels and the stocks-consumption ratio is forecast to remain below four weeks over the next three years...

We may not be out of the woods yet and further liquidation and selling could be lurking. Tonight’s weekly chart closes will be important in determining near-term price direction.

The way they are going, it ($600) could come quite quickly, although we should expect to see some profit-taking.

Everything I’ve seen this week points to a tightening market. Stocks are falling and canceled warrants are rising, indicating good demand.

Base and precious metals remain in a virtuous circle with each appearing to feed off the strength of the others.

There does seem to be a desire to have exposure to commodities by both long-term funds and speculators.

It is difficult to know what is happening — it may be profit-taking, but it is certainly not a trend reversal.