Coke prices go up 56% in April!

This information is from Scotiabank's Commodity Price Index news release on April 22, 2010.  It advises that premium-grade hard coking coal contracts with Japanese steel mills has moved from $US128 per tonne to $US200 per tonne.  That's a 56.25% increase.

Better news yet, is the Asian market for Hamersley fines iron ore moved from 97 US cents per dry metric tonne to 184 cents: that's a fraction shy of 90% increase.

This is a great lift in the building blocks of manufactoring- steel, and especially since world steel production increased almost 31% year over year.   In fact, world steel production has just surpassed the previous peak in March 2008.

What's the moral of the story?   Commodity price increases adnn metal production increases speak well for saying the recession is fading into history.

Although, there is a lag time between increased prices and sales, and a surge in re-employment and new employment, it means there is pressure on interest rates to go up.   

Making financial decisions is easier now.  They will only get more expensive as time goes on.  Now is the time to make a move.