Teck (TCK) (BHP) (PAA) (SM) (AKS) (PQ) (SVM) (TRI) Ratings, Price Targets

Teck Resources Limited (NYSE: TCK), BHP Billiton (NYSE: BHP), Plains All American (NYSE: PAA), SM Energy (NYSE: SM), AK Steel Holding Co. (NYSE: AKS), PetroQuest Energy, Inc. (NYSE: PQ), Silvercorp Metals (NYSE: SVM) and Thomson Reuters Co. (NYSE: TRI) had ratings and price targets on them adjusted by analysts.

Plains All American (PAA) had its “Buy” rating reiterated by Wunderlich.

SM Energy (NYSE: SM) had its “buy” rating reiterated by Canaccord Genuity.

BHP Billiton (BHP) had its price target lowered by Dahlman Rose from $116.00 to $96.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the company.

Teck Resources Limited (TCK) had its price target raised by Dahlman Rose from $47.00 to $52.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the company.

AK Steel Holding Co. (AKS) was downgraded by Citigroup (NYSE:C) from a “Buy” rating to a “Neutral” rating. They have a price target of $9.00 on the company, down from $12.00.

PetroQuest Energy, Inc. (PQ) was downgraded by FBR Capital from an “Outperform” rating to a “Market Perform” rating.

Silvercorp Metals (SVM) was downgraded by UBS AG (NYSE:UBS) to a “Neutral” rating.

Thomson Reuters Co. (TRI) was downgraded by TD Securities to a “Buy” rating.

Teck (TCK) (SWI) (WY) (ANR) (CXO) (HNR) Ratings, Price Targets

Teck Resources Limited (NYSE: TCK), SolarWinds, Inc. (NYSE: SWI), Weyerhaeuser (NYSE: WY), Alpha Natural Resources (NYSE: ANR), Concho Resources Inc. (NYSE: CXO) and Harvest Natural Resources, Inc. (NYSE: HNR) had ratings and price targets on them adjusted by analysts.

Teck Resources Limited (TCK) was downgraded by TD Securities to a “Buy” rating.

SolarWinds, Inc. (SWI) had its price target raised by Mizuho from $30.00 to $38.00. They have a “Neutral” rating on the company.

Weyerhaeuser (WY) was downgraded by UBS AG (NYSE:UBS) from a “Neutral” rating to a “Sell” rating.

Alpha Natural Resources (ANR) had its price target lowered by Howard Weil from $39.00 to $37.00. They have an “Outperform” rating on the company.

Concho Resources Inc. (CXO) had its price target raised by Ladenburg Thalmann to $125.00.

Harvest Natural Resources, Inc. (HNR) was downgraded by Rodman & Renshaw from an “Outperform” rating to a “Market Perform” rating.

Teck (TCK) (SWY) (SYMC) (DE) (FE) (FIRE) Get New Coverage

Teck Resources Limited (NYSE: TCK), Safeway Inc. (NYSE: SWY), Symantec (NASDAQ: SYMC), Deere & Company (NYSE: DE), FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE: FE) and Sourcefire, Inc. (NASDAQ: FIRE) getting new coverage from analysts.

Dahlman Rose initiated coverage on Teck Resources Limited (TCK). They placed a “Buy” rating and a price target of $47.00 on the company.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) initiated coverage on Safeway Inc. (SWY). They placed a “Neutral” rating and a price target of $22.00 on the company. They cited valuation as the catalyst behind the call.

ThinkEquity initiated coverage on Symantec (SYMC). They placed a “Buy” rating and a price target of $20.00 on the company.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) initiated coverage on Deere & Company (DE). They placed an “Underweight” rating and a price target of $74.00 on the company.

UBS AG (NYSE:UBS) initiated coverage on FirstEnergy Corp. (FE). They placed a “Neutral” rating and a price target of $47.00 on the company.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) initiated coverage on Sourcefire, Inc. (FIRE). They placed a “Buy” rating and a price target of $36.00 on the company.

Teck (TCK) (STX) (SYMC) (AZSEY) (BID) (BMTC) Ratings, Price Targets

Teck Resources Limited (TCK), Seagate (STX), Symantec (SYMC), Allianz SE (AZSEY), Sotheby’s (BID) and Bryn Mawr Bank Corp. (BMTC) ratings and price targets.

Dahlman Rose initiated coverage on Teck Resources Limited (TCK). They placed a “Buy” rating and a price target of $47.00 on the company.

Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB) downgraded Seagate (STX) from a “Buy” rating

to a “Hold” rating. They have a price target of $20.00 on the company.

Deutsche Bank reiterated its “Hold” on Symantec (SYMC). They have a price target of $20.00 on the company.

WestLB downgraded Allianz SE (AZSEY) to a “Buy” rating.

Citigroup (NYSE:C) reiterated its “Neutral” on Sotheby’s (BID). They have a price target of $35.00 on the company.

Sterne Agee initiated coverage on Bryn Mawr Bank Corp. (BMTC). They placed a “Buy” rating and a price target of $21.00 on the company.

Teck (TCK) (RTN) (RSH) (OIS) (KEG) (LLY) Upgraded

Teck Resources Limited (NYSE: TCK), Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN), RadioShack (NYSE: RSH), Oil States International, Inc. (NYSE: OIS), Key Energy (NYSE: KEG) and Eli Lilly & Co. (NYSE: LLY) upgraded by analysts.

Teck Resources Limited (TCK) was upgraded by BB&T (NYSE:BBT) from a “Hold” rating to a “Buy” rating.

Raytheon Company (RTN) was upgraded by Sanford C. Bernstein from a “Market Perform” rating to an “Outperform” rating.

RadioShack (RSH) was upgraded by Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) from a “Neutral” rating to a “Buy” rating. They have a price target of $18.00 on the company.

Oil States International, Inc. (OIS) was upgraded by Credit Suisse (NYSE:CS) from a “Neutral” rating to an “Outperform” rating. They

have a price target of $110.00 on the company.

Key Energy (KEG) was upgraded by Weeden from a “Hold” rating to a “Buy” rating. They have a price target of $26.00 on the company.

Eli Lilly & Co. (LLY) was upgraded by Leerink from an “Underperform” rating to a “Market Perform” rating.

Transocean (RIG) (TCK) (WLT) (SM) (RKT) All Upgraded

Transocean (NYSE: RIG), Teck Resources Limited (NYSE: TCK), Walter Energy (NYSE: WLT), SM Energy (NYSE: SM) and Rock-Tenn Company (NYSE: RKT) upgraded by analysts.

Jefferies (NYSE: JEF) upgraded Transocean (NYSE: RIG) to a

“Buy” rating. They have a price target of $80.00 on the company.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) upgraded Rock-Tenn Company (RKT) from a “Neutral” rating to an “Overweight” rating. They have a price target of $80.00 on the company.

Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) upgraded SM Energy (SM) from a “Market Perform” rating to an “Outperform” rating.

BMO Capital Markets upgraded Teck Resources Limited (TCK) from a “Market Perform” rating to an “Outperform” rating.

BMO Capital Markets upgraded Walter Energy (WLT) to an “outperform” rating.

Freeport (FCX) (NEM) (SOLR) (TCK) Price Targets Changed by Analysts

Analysts adjusted their price targets on shares of Freeport-McMoRan Copper and Gold Inc (NYSE: FCX), Newmont Mining Co. (NYSE: NEM), GT Solar International, Inc. (NASDAQ: SOLR) and Teck Resources Limited (NYSE: TCK).

Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB) cut their price target on Freeport McMoRan Copper and Gold Inc (FCX) from $65.00 to $60.00. They have a “hold” rating on the company.

Deutsche Bank analysts cut their price target on shares of Newmont Mining Co. (NEM) from $85.00 to $75.00. They now have a “buy” rating on the company.

Wunderlich analysts raised their price target on shares of GT Solar International, Inc. (SOLR) from $16.00 to $20.00. They now have a “buy” rating on the company.

Deutsche Bank analysts cut their price target on shares of Teck Resources Limited (TCK) from $77.00 to $70.00. They now have a “buy” rating on the company.

Freeport-McMoRan closed Tuesday at $53.59, up $0.09, or 0.17 percent. Newmont Mining ended the session at $54.37, gaining $0.63, or 1.17 percent. GT Solar International closed at $17.11, jumping $0.93, or 5.75 percent. Teck Resources finished at $52.78, rising $0.53, or 1.01 percent.

Miners (FCX) (RIO) (VALE) (TCK) Trade Mixed

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX), Rio Tinto (NYSE:RIO), Vale (NYSE:VALE) and Teck Resources (NYSE:TCK) traded mixed on Thursday as commodity prices were pressured down.

Gold for June delivery closed down $3.40, or 0.2 percent, at $1,492.40 a troy ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The ICE Futures' dollar index was down 0.5 percent at 75.106. The U.S. dollar was down against most of its major peers at the end of trading Thursday.

Silver prices ended the session down. July delivery for silver fell 16.5 cents, or 0.5 percent, to $34.932 a troy ounce.

Extremely bad news on Obama's economy pressured the commodity sector.

July contracts had copper falling 5.25 cents to settle at $4.0525 a pound and platinum dropped $10.90 to $1,769 an ounce. June palladium settled down $9.05 at $728.15 an ounce.

Questions as to the sustainability of iron ore prices over the long term are a question for the diversified miners, although in the short term that won't be an issue. That comes from expectations China's demand for steel will slow down and more iron ore coming into the market.

Housing sales and manufacturing data revealed an ongoing weak and fragile American economy.

Rio Tinto closed Thursday at $67.41, dropping $0.81, or 1.19 percent. Vale ended the session at $30.45, gaining $0.13, or 0.43 percent. Teck Resources closed at $49.96, falling $0.24, or 0.48 percent. Freeport-McMoRan closed at $47.97, down $0.65, or 1.34 percent.

Miners Vale (VALE) (FCX) (RIO) (TCK) Trade Up

Shares of diversified miners Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX), Rio Tinto (NYSE:RIO), Teck Resources (NYSE:TCK) and Vale (NYSE:VALE) all traded up on Wednesday as gold, silver and most other commodity prices climbed on the day.

June gold climbed $15.80 to $1,495.80 per troy ounce, a 1.1 percent gain on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The less traded May contract was up $15.80, or 1.1 percent, to $1,495.60 a troy ounce.

The silver contract for May delivery gained $1.61, or 4.8 percent, to $35.10 a troy ounce.

A weaker dollar was the major catalyst for gold and silver specifically, and commodities in general on Wednesday.

Benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude for June delivery was up $3.19, or 3.3 percent, to settle at $100.10 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Brent crude rose $2.31 in London, or 2.1 percent, to settle at $112.30 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.

The U.S. dollar index, which measures the dollar against a basket of six currencies, traded at 75.438, down a little from 75.441 late Tuesday. That was also a factor in gold and silver prices going up.

July platinum was $18.90 higher to end at $1,779.90 per troy ounce, while June palladium jumped $22.95 to $737.20 per troy ounce.

For base metals, July copper rose 11 cents to $4.11 per pound in New York trade, while three-month contracts for the metal were $262 higher to $9,061 per ton on the London Metal Exchange.

Aluminium inventories increased in LME warehouses, adding 1,325 tons to a new record high of 4.71 million tons. Even so, three-month contracts for aluminium still were up $55 to $2,556 per ton.

Zinc was up $97 to $2,188 per ton in London and lead was $136 higher to $2,445 per ton.

Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) closed Wednesday at $48.62, gaining $1.79, or 3.82 percent. Vale closed at $30.32, up $0.46, or 1.54 percent. Rio Tinto ended the session at $68.22, rising $0.83, or 1.23 percent. Teck Resources closed at $50.20, jumping $2.08, or 4.32 percent.

Miners (GRS) (FCX) (NG) (RGLD) (TCK) Trade Mixed as Gold Falls

While several events should have helped support gold prices on Wednesday, that wasn't the case, as Gammon Gold (NYSE:GRS), Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX), NovaGold Resources Inc. (AMEX:NG), Royal Gold (Nasdaq:RGLD) and Teck Resources Ltd (NYSE:TCK) closed mixed, with gold for June delivery, the most actively traded contract, falling $25.10 to $1,515.30 an ounce.

Silver prices are the story for commodities and gold at this time, as the plunge in prices is dragging down the overall commodity sector, as traders sell off holdings to take some profits.

Silver fell $3.197, or 7.5 percent, to settle at $39.388 an ounce. That's the third straight day of losses after silver closed in on $50 an ounce mark last week.

Silver for July delivery dropped $2.820, at $39.765 per troy ounce.

The U.S. dollar index lost 0.15 percent to $73.01, dropping from Tuesday's 73.127 close. The dollar index is down 7.5 percent so far in 2011.

Against the euro, the dollar plunged to its lowest level Wednesday since December 2009.

Other than the fall of the dollar, other factors that would have normally supported gold was the underreported decision by the European Union to bail out Portugal for close to 78 billion euros.

Also largely ignored was the ADP Employment Change report for April, which showed the private sector missed the anticipated addition of 200,000 jobs, being able to only generate 179,000 for the month.

Also of note Wednesday was the Institute for Supply Management’s services-sector index, which was weakened more than expected in April, confirming that American growth is slowing.

Gammon Gold (GRS) closed Wednesday at $10.05, rising $0.12, or 1.21 percent.

Diversified Miners (RIO) (TCK) (VALE) (BHP) Close Down as Base Metals Drop

Base metals dropped in Monday trading putting pressure on diversified mining giants Rio Tinto (NYSE:RIO), BHP Billiton (NYSE:BHP), Vale SA (NYSE:VALE) and Teck Resources, (NYSE:TCK), which all closed down.

Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange dropped to $9,207 a ton, its lowest since March 17. It closed at $9,225 a ton from Friday's close at $9,450.

Stocks of copper in LME warehouses last rose 1,350 tons to 451,775 tons, their highest since June 2010.

Also weighing on metals, the U.S. dollar was stronger against a basket of major currencies, weakening metals demand from non-U.S. investors. European equities were down on increased talk that Greece will be forced to restructure its debt and uncertainty over a bailout for Portugal which dampened risk appetite.

Aluminium closed $2,674 from $2,690 a ton.

Zinc ended at $2,325 from $2,398 a ton. Stocks of the metal rose 50 tons to a seven-year high of 764,300 tons.

Battery material lead was down close to five percent to its lowest in over a month at $2,520 a ton. It closed at $2,528 from $2,651 a ton, while tin finished at $32,350 from $33,100 a ton and nickel ended at $25,500 a ton from $26,155.

Platinum was lower by 0.2 percent at $1,779.99 an ounce, while palladium fell 3.3 percent to $735.22.

BHP closed Monday at $97.98, falling $1.82, or 1.82 percent. Rio Tinto closed at $69.09, down $1.82, or 2.57 percent. Teck Resources ended the session at $50.68, losing $1.26, or 2.43 percent. Vale closed at $32.05, dropping $0.73, or 2.23 percent.

Diversifieds BHP (BHP) (VALE) (RIO) (TCK) (FCX) Trade Mixed

Shares of diversified miners such as BHP Billiton (NYSE:BHP), Rio Tinto (NYSE:RIO), Vale SA (NYSE:VALE), Teck Resources (NYSE:TCK) and Freeport-McMoran (NYSE:FCX) were trading mixed Thursday, metals prices moved in various directions.

In base metals trading, May copper dropped 1.05 cents to settle at $4.284 a pound, July platinum increased $18.40 to $1,795.60 an ounce and June palladium was up $8.95 to $774.25 an ounce. May copper fell 1.05 cents to settle at $4.284 a pound.

Iron ore demand is expected to remain tight over the medium term, and over the long term should jump in response to the rebuilding needs coming from the consequences of the earthquake in Japan.

Gold for June delivery rose $16.80 to settle at $1,472.40 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Spot gold was up 1.4 percent to $1,474.30 an ounce, closing in on its record $1,476.21 set on Monday. Silver rose $1.427, or 3.6 percent, to $41.66 an ounce.

The collapsing U.S. dollar, tightening in China, sovereign debt crisis in Europe, unrest in the Middle East, increasing inflation and consequences of the Japanese earthquake are just some of the negative catalysts affecting the price movements.

The U.S. dollar was close to session lows, resulting in a further impetus to gold. The U.S. currency traded as low as 74.617, its lowest level since December 2009.

Teck Resources closed Thursday at $52.30, falling $0.59, or 1.12 percent. Rio Tinto closed at $71.70, up $0.04, or 0.06 percent. Vale SA ended the day at $32.65, up $0.64, or 2.01 percent. BHP Billiton closed at $100.42, rising $0.17, or 0.17 percent. Freeport-McMoran closed at $51.93, dropping $0.38, or 0.73 percent.

Teck (TCK) (FCX) (VALE) (RIO) Fall as Base Metals Drop

Even though Gold and silver prices were up moderately Wednesday, diversified miners like Teck Resources Limited (NYSE:TCK), Freeport-McMoran (NYSE:FCX), Vale (NYSE:VALE) and Rio Tinto (NYSE:RIO), closed down on the day, as most base metals fell in price.

July platinum added $2.90 to $1,777.20 a troy ounce, but June palladium fell $4.80 to $765.30 a troy ounce.

Among base metals, May copper was down 9 cents to $4.30 a pound in New York trade, while three-month contracts were $115 lower to $9,515 a ton on the London Metal Exchange after stockpiles in LME-monitored warehouses added another 3,225 tons throughout the day.

Tin was also down in London trade, falling $300 to $32,250 a ton, while nickel dropped $450 to $26,250 a ton.

On Wednesday gold prices closed at $1455.60 an ounce. The Silver price for the May contract was higher by .43 percent at 40.24 an ounce.

The collapsing U.S. dollar continues to be a big factor, although it gained in strength near the end of trading Wednesday. Other factors are tightening in China, sovereign debt crisis in Europe, unrest in the Middle East, deepening food and fuel inflation and the consequences of the Japanese earthquake in the auto and tech sectors, among others.

Rio Tinto closed Wednesday at $71.66, dropping $0.47, or 0.65 percent. Teck Resources Limited closed at $52.89, down $1.03, or 1.91 percent. Freeport-McMoran closed at $52.31, falling $1.14, or 2.13 percent. Vale closed at $32.39, declining $0.58, or 1.76 percent.

Teck (TCK) (BHP) (FCX) (RIO) Will Soar on Copper Rebound

While there will be a temporary glut in the copper supply in the early part of 2011, as the year goes on, expectations are things will tighten up and after a period of correction, prices will soar, driving up shares of mining giants like BHP Billiton (NYSE:BHP), Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX), Rio Tinto (RIO) and Teck Resources (NYSE:TCK).

Part of the problem at this time is the poor ore grades the copper giants are hitting, which in the longer run will increase costs, but also the price of copper as the market tightens on the lower supply.

The other good news for the miners with significant copper exposure is these conditions should continue on over the next several years, as demand continues to be strong.

Along with declining ore grades, other factors include delays to mine expansions and disruption from strikes.

The scenario will change when the giant copper deposit at Oyu Tolgoi mine in Mongolia goes online in 2013, where about 450,000 tons of copper is expected to be produced annually. Those benefiting from that will be Ivanhoe Mines (NYSE:IVN) and Rio Tinto.

For now, there will be a temporary copper glut and then everything will begin to tighten as the year goes on, pushing prices up as high a 18 percent, according to analysts.

Teck Resources' (TCK) Work Stoppage at Elkview Continues

Teck Resources (NYSE:TCK) was disappointed as the tentative 5-year agreement with striking workers at is Elkview operation in British Columbia was rejected by 57 percent of the workers, paving the way for negotiations having to start over concerning the facility.

The mine would have already been operational if the contract had been agreed upon.

Teck said in a statement, “Teck plans to recommence discussions with the Elkview union bargaining committee aimed at reaching a new collective agreement.”

Over 700 United Steelworkers of American workers have been without a contract since the previous one expired on October 31. The strike was launched on January 30.

Coal production at Elkview accounts for close to 20 percent of the estimated total for 2011.

Teck closed Tuesday at $53.19, falling $0.78, or 1.45 percent.

Freeport (FCX), (RIO), (TCK) Pumped Up on Raw Material Demand

Shares of Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX), Rio Tinto (NYSE:RIO) and Teck Resources (NYSE:TCK) continue to soar on the expected long-term demand for raw materials from Japan, to add to the demand from China as well.

The amount of devastation in the country ensures there will be a call for commodities to help Japan rebuild for years into the future, strengthening an already strong outlook. Diversified miners like these could continue the bull run much longer on the Japan equation alone.

Freeport closed Thursday at $52.00, gaining $1.71, or 3.40 percent. Rio Tinto closed at $64.61, up $2.61, or 4.21 percent. Teck Resources closed at $54.43, rising $2.89, or 5.61 percent.

Freeport (FCX), Teck (TCK), Rio (RIO), Vale (Vale) Continue Slide on Copper Concerns

Even though mining giants like Freeport-McMoRan, Teck (NYSE:TCK), Rio Tinto (NYSE:RIO) and Vale (NYSE:Vale) have varying degrees of exposure to copper, the declining price of the metal has investors concerned over global growth in general, as copper is a leading proxy in that regard.

Over the last three days copper prices have fallen about 9 percent, the lowest price since December.

What is generating the fall in stock prices and copper is concern over demand for raw materials in general, as the price of oil remains high with no end in site at this time as to when it will fall back to earth.

The only reason the broader markets have been holding up is the unrest in the Middle East, which is causing the spike in oil prices, is thought to be a temporary situation.

If it does get worse, then all bets are off as to how high oil will go, with a growing number of analysts and experts believing gas could reach $4 a gallon in response to the spike. Oil may even test highs if things aren't settled down.

Freeport closed Wednesday at $48.45, down $1.66, or 3.31 percent. Rio Tinto closed at $66.74, down $0.73, or 1.08 percent. Teck Resources closed at $52.57, falling $1.67, or 3.08 percent. Vale ended the day at $32.88, losing $0.41, or 1.23 percent.

Teck Resources (TCK) Sells Stake in Carrapateena for $134 Million

Teck Resources (NYSE:TCK) announced it'll be selling its 34 percent stake the Carrapateena deposit, located in Australia, for $134 million. The stake is being acquired by an affiliate of OZ Minerals Ltd.

Carrapateena is among the largest undeveloped copper and gold deposits in Australia.

There is an estimated 4.4 million tons of copper, 6 million ounces of gold, and 225 million pounds of uranium, along with some rare earths and haematite iron ore in the resource.

BHP Billiton (NYSE:BHP) has its Dam mine in the same geological structure as Carrapateena is located in.

Australia's privately held RMG Services has a 58 percent stake in the project.

Teck could also receive up to $25 million in the deal based on certain production milestones. They've spend about $30.3 million exploring the site over the last six years.

The deal should close in the second quarter.

Teck Resources closed in New York Tuesday at $54.23, gaining $0.21, or 0.39 percent.

NovaGold's (NG) Ambler Project Attracting a Lot of Attention

Looking for ways to raise capital for their two flagship projects, NovaGold (AMEX:NG) has been putting feelers out for some time concerning its Ambler project, which includes copper, zinc, gold and silver.

The company says the project is drawing a lot of attention and they're going through what is presumed to be a variety of offers to see which is the best way to go.

CEO and president Rick Van Nieuwenhuyse said, “With copper over $4 and zinc over a dollar, it certainly has attracted a lot of attention from a lot of different places, some of which we didn't really expect to have to consider.

“It's a good news thing, that we have a lot of interest from a lot of different areas but we'll just do a diligent job of assessing them and deciding which is the best.”

This is part of NovaGold's strategy with its main assets, which include 50% holdings in 2 big development projects – the Donlin Creek gold project in Alaska, which it co-owns with Barrick Gold (NYSE:ABX), and the Galore Creek project in British Columbia, where Teck Resources (NYSE:TCK) is the other partner.

NovaGold is looking to divest of non-core assets which will pay for its portion of the capital costs of bringing the projects online.

NovaGold closed Thursday at $13.85, dropping $0.41, or 2.88 percent.

Rio Tinto (RIO), Vale (VALE), Teck Resources (TCK), BHP (BHP) Battered as Commodity Futures Drop

Equities linked to commodities took a big hit, as Rio Tinto (RIO), Vale (VALE), Teck Resources (TCK) and BHP (BHP) all ended down on Tuesday.

BHP Billiton did better than its competitors, as the company announced a deal to acquire the Arkansas shale-gas assets of Chesapeake Energy (CHK) for close to $4.75 billion.

The selloff had an impact the shares of almost every company that plays in natural resources, from steelmakers to miners of industrial metals to chemicals producers to agricultural companies to the shipping concerns that transport those raw materials across the waters.

The drop in cyclical names came on the heels of a huge decline in the broader equities market Thursday, with the DJIA posting triple-digit losses as investors reacted to the prospect of a continually destabilizing Middle East and what that would do to oil prices.

Commodities futures led the tumble into the red. The front-month copper contract was falling nearly 17 cents to $4.32 a pound on the Globex division of the CME, declining from a record high of $4.66.

Agricultural commodities were also plunging. In Chicago trading, the May corn futures contract was losing 30 cents to fall below $7 a bushel.

The several reasons for the commodity declines. First, a growing number of traders believe the run-up in commodities prices has resulted a priced-to-perfection environment in basic materials stocks.

Recent concerns over the contagious Middle Eastern political unrest reached the first major oil producing nation in Libya this weekend, driving crude prices up.

Energy prices are connected with food prices, and inflation in both sectors has raised the possibility of central banks around the world putting inflation-cutting measures in place on their economies, which would slow growth.

The greatest uncertainty remains the Federal Reserve's zero-interest rate policy and quantitative-easing programs, and what the consequences to the economy, and commodities markets will be, once that rug is pulled out from under them.

The supply side of the commodities sector continues to look bullish, with the macro-trends still in place: food stocks are tight, and metals production still faces challenges.

It's demand that investors seem to be concerned about now, and the level to which any interest-rate tightening by monetary authorities around the world impacts international growth.

Steelmakers, already under pressure, probably fared the worst. ArcelorMittal's (MT) plummeted 5.3%, U.S. Steel (X) almost 7%, and AK Steel (AKS) 7.5%.

Fertilizer giants Potash (POT), CF Industries (CF) and Mosaic (MOS) were hit hard as well, falling 6.3%, 4% and 3.7%, respectively.

Dry-bulk shipping firms were also getting blasted. Diana Shipping(DSX) dropped close to 5%. DryShips (DRYS) was falling by a about the same, while Genco Shipping & Trading (GNK) plunged 7%.