Robin Bhar, senior metals analyst at CreditAgricoleCorporate and Investment Bank, said as geopolitical factors wane, the focus is shifting toward the U.S. dollar, the Eurozone debt crisis and inflation concerns.
Corporate bank borrowers such as CreditAgricole, BNP Paribas and Societe Generale were given more time, after a lifeline was thrown to them by the European Central Bank when it flushed liquidity into the system on Dec. 21.