Oct. 21 (Bloomberg) -- This market comment was written at 7:40 a.m. on October 20th, US east coast time...

Commodity prices staged a sharp retreat yesterday, with earlier gains eroding on signs of continued discord coming out of Europe. Things got off to a bad start after European officials denied a Guardian story that France and Germany had agreed on a €2 billion stabilization fund, as well as on a rough outline for a bank recapitalization program. As the day wore on, the concerns only mounted-- French President Nicolas Sarcozy abruptly flew off to Germany to consult with Chancellor Merkel, ignoring waiting reporters (and apparently leaving his pregnant wife behind in Paris to deliver on her own). The fact that Moody’s also moved to slash Spanish debt on Tuesday by two notches only underscored the gravity of the situation and the need for the two European powerhouses to reach some kind of working consensus – and soon.