GLOBAL MARKETS-Dollar hits 8-month high on rate expectations, metals drop

* Base metals prices fall again as dollar gains
* Pfizer set to buy Allergan (N:AGN_pa) for $160 bln
* Commodities index hits 13-year low before recovering

(Updates to U.S. afternoon markets)
By Caroline Valetkevitch
NEW YORK, Nov 23 (Reuters) - The dollar rose to an
eight-month high on Monday amid heightened expectations that the
U.S. Federal Reserve would raise interest rates next month,
driving down the prices of copper, gold and other metals.
Worries that a buoyant dollar could discourage producers
from cutting supply despite weak demand weighed on base metals
prices. Copper fell to its cheapest in six months before
recovering, while London nickel slid to its lowest since 2003.
Gold fell nearly one percent towards last week's near-six-year
low.
"In the context of a market waiting for supply-side cuts, a
stronger dollar is only going to weigh on the cost curve and
constrain the pace at which cutbacks are made," said Nicholas
Snowdon, analyst at Standard Chartered (L:STAN).
U.S. stocks fell slightly in afternoon trading, with
utilities .SPLRCU pressured by rate hike expectations.
The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI fell 60.49 points,
or 0.34 percent, to 17,763.32, the S&P 500 .SPX lost 5.06
points, or 0.24 percent, to 2,084.11 and the Nasdaq Composite
.IXIC dropped 11.70 points, or 0.23 percent, to 5,093.22.
"We're coming off a very strong performance, a market that
has shown tremendous resilience and a strong propensity of
coming back," said Andre Bakhos, managing director at Janlyn
Capital LLC in Bernardsville, New Jersey.
The healthcare sector was in focus after Pfizer PFE.N said
it would buy Botox maker Allergan AGN.N in a record deal worth
$160 billion.
Other world equity markets also slipped after five days of
gains, while European shares ended lower as commodity-related
stocks fell. An MSCI index of global stock markets
.MIWD00000PUS fell 0.4 percent, and a broad gauge of European
stocks .FTEU3 ended down 0.3 percent.
The dollar index .DXY , which measures the greenback
against six major currencies, rose 0.4 percent, touching 100.00,
an eight-month high not far from this year's peak of 100.390.
San Francisco Fed President John Williams on Saturday cited
a "strong case" for raising rates when Fed policymakers meet
next month, as long as U.S. economic data does not disappoint.
His comments overshadowed Monday's lackluster U.S.
manufacturing and housing reports.
Three-month copper CMCU3 on the London Metal Exchange hit
a low of $4,443.50 a tonne before recovering to end at $4,490,
down 2 percent. LME nickel CMNI3 fell as far as $8,175 before
ending down 5 percent at $8,300. Spot gold XAU=
was 0.7 percent lower at $1,070.33 an ounce.
A measure of commodity prices hit its lowest in 13 years
before bouncing back. The Thomson Reuters Core Commodity CRB
index .TRJCRB hit its lowest since November 2002. The gauge is
down more than 20 percent so far this year.
Crude oil prices rose after Saudi Arabia's pledge to work on
price stability offset some worries about the global oil glut.
Benchmark Brent futures LCOc1 were up 41 cents at $45.07 a
barrel. U.S. crude's West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures
CLc1 rose 7 cents to $41.97 a barrel.
U.S. Treasuries prices edged up, with benchmark 10-year
Treasuries notes US10YT=RR up 4/32 for a yield of 2.25
percent, according to Reuters data.

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Global assets in 2015 http://link.reuters.com/dub25t
Currencies vs dollar http://link.reuters.com/tak27s
Commodities performance http://link.reuters.com/rac73w
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