Crude oil prices gain as metals decline

Crude oil prices were up again on Wednesday after a day of declines on Tuesday.

While prices were down nearly $3 in early trade, they gained on new threats to oil facilities in Nigeria and despite new data indicating that demand for oil and oil products is down, at least in the United States.

July contracts for West Texas Intermediate crude oil had added $2.13 to $130.98 per barrel just before the close of trade on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while at last report Brent crude had gained $1.58 to $129.89 per barrel on the ICE Futures Europe exchange in London.

Nymex June gasoline was up 6 cents to $3.45 per gallon and July heating oil was 2 cents higher to $3.84 per gallon while July natural gas jumped 8 cents to $12 per million British thermal units.

The US Energy Information Administration’s weekly report on US inventories is scheduled for Thursday this week due to Monday’s observance of Memorial Day.

Metals prices were down on the session.

July copper was down 2 cents in New York to $3.70 per pound while in London three-month Copper was $95 lower to $8,095 per tonne.

Nickel prices fell in London, dropping $800 to $22,500 per tonne while lead was down $22 to $2,028 per tonne, zinc fell $31 to $2,120 per tonne, aluminium was $26 percent lower to $2,960 per tonne while tin dropped $600 to $23,600 per tonne.

Among precious metals, August gold was down $7.80 to $905 per troy ounce in New York while July silver fell 5 cents to $17.42 per troy ounce and July platinum plummeted $61.20 to $2,066.90 per troy ounce.

Grains prices were mixed, with July wheat on the Chicago Board of Trade even at $7.59 per bushel while CBOT July corn down 5 cents to $5.92 per bushel and July soybeans jumped 25 cents to $13.72 per bushel.

The spike in soybean prices came after farmers in Argentina said they will refrain from selling grians and livestock as a protest against the government’s imposition of export taxes.

Sale of corn and soybeans were halted today and livestock will be withheld from slaughterhouses beginning Thursday, with sales scheduled to resume on Monday, June 2.

The farmers blamed the government’s unwillingness to discuss the issue for the new protests.

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