The Standard & Poor’s GSCI gauge (SPGSCI) of 24 commodities rose 0.5 percent to 664.36 as of 6:27 p.m. in Singapore. The UBS Bloomberg CMCI index (CMCIPI) of 26 raw materials climbed 0.5 percent to 1,547.041
CRUDE OIL
Oil headed for a weekly gain in New York on signs that the U.S. economic recovery is gaining momentum and concern that tensions with Iran may lead to a disruption in Middle East exports.
Crude for February delivery was at $102.18 at 8:36 a.m. London time. Yesterday, the contract fell $1.41 to $101.81, the lowest settlement this week. Prices gained 8.2 percent in 2011.
NATURAL GAS
OIL PRODUCTS
Gasoil, or diesel, swaps for February slid 10 cents to $128 a barrel at 11:45 a.m. Singapore time, according to PVM Oil Associates Ltd., a broker. Prices are set for a 4.5 percent gain this week, the most since April.
Gasoil’s premium to Dubai crude rose $1.21 to $19.66 a barrel, the highest since Nov. 21, PVM said. This crack spread, a measure of refining profit, is headed for the first weekly increase in four weeks.
Fuel oil’s discount to Dubai crude narrowed $1.16 to $2.96 a barrel, according to PVM. The gap increased the previous three days, signaling losses for refiners turning oil into residual products. February high-sulfur fuel oil swaps dropped 50 cents to $685 a metric ton, PVM said.
Benchmark naphtha swaps decreased $5, or 0.5 percent, to $939 a ton, according to PVM. The petrochemical feedstock is up 3.7 percent from last week.
PRECIOUS METALS
Cash gold gained as much as 0.4 percent to $1,628.52 an ounce, the highest level since Dec. 21, and traded little changed at $1,621 an ounce at 3:55 p.m. in Singapore. February- delivery bullion rose as much as 0.6 percent to $1,629.30 on the Comex in New York.
BASE METALS
Copper for delivery in three months gained 0.3 percent to $7,565.75 a metric ton by 9:42 a.m. on the London Metal Exchange. The metal is down 0.5 percent this week. The March- delivery contract rose 0.3 percent to $3.435 a pound on the Comex in New York.
GRAINS, OILSEEDS, LIVESTOCK
Soybeans for delivery in March rose 0.7 percent to $12.1775 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade at 3:57 p.m. Singapore time, set for a 0.8 percent gain this week. The contract earlier dropped 0.4 percent.
Corn for delivery in March advanced 0.6 percent to $6.475 a bushel, after declining as much as 0.5 percent. It was set for a 0.2 percent gain this week. Wheat for March delivery gained 0.4 percent to $6.32 a bushel, erasing an earlier loss of 0.3 percent and trimming the weekly loss to 3.2 percent.
Wholesale pork slid 1.1 percent Jan. 4 to 84.71 cents a pound, the lowest since Jan. 14, 2011, U.S. Department of Agriculture data show. The Chicago Mercantile Exchange’s Lean- Hog Index, a measure of spot-market prices, traded at 81.39 cents a pound yesterday, or 3.785 cents less than the February futures contract.
Hog futures for February settlement fell 1.6 percent to settle at 83.85 cents a pound yesterday on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, after reaching 83.775 cents, the lowest since Dec. 22. The price has rallied 7.5 percent in the past year. Cattle futures for February delivery dropped 0.6 percent to settle at $1.2095 a pound on the CME. Prices have rallied 13 percent in the past 12 months.
Feeder-cattle futures for March settlement gained 0.2 percent to $1.5085 a pound in Chicago, after reaching a record $1.521. Prices are up 23 percent in the past year.
SOFT COMMODITIES
Orange juice for March delivery rose 2.9 percent to settle at $1.7805 a pound yesterday on ICE Futures U.S. in New York, after gaining as much as 5 percent to $1.817, the highest for a most-active contract since Aug. 5. Prices have rallied 9.1 percent in the past two weeks.
Raw sugar for March delivery plunged 5.3 percent to settle at 23.13 cents a pound yesterday on ICE Futures in New York, the biggest decline since Sept. 16. The sweetener sank 27 percent in 2011 as crops expanded in Asia and Europe.
Arabica-coffee futures for March delivery declined 3.2 percent to close at $2.1955 a pound in New York, the biggest drop since Oct. 31. The price sank 29 percent since reaching a 14-year high in May.
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