Deposits

After trading within an extremely tight, 3-cent range for almostthe entire trading session Thursday, the January contract was hitwith a late sell-off, as bears took advantage of nearly-illiquid,pre-holiday trading conditions. No fresh news was seen to incitethe liquidation, leaving several traders to suggest it was anattempt to set a bearish tone for the January contract expirationTuesday. The prompt month finished down 4.5 cents at $2.399 amidlight estimated volume of 28,617.