Oil, metals prices mixed as grains prices are higher

Crude oil prices were mixed Monday, seeing gains in New York and declines in London as the US dollar weakened, making oil less expensive for buyers using other currencies and on reports that a Chevron pipeline was attacked in the Niger Delta.

West Texas Intermediate crude April contracts ended $1.10 higher to $47.35 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after trading below $44 per barrel earlier, but Brent crude dropped $1.16 to $43.77 per barrel on the ICE Future Europe exchange in London.

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries chose to leave production quotas as is for the present at its Sunday meeting in Vienna in favor of making sure its member nations comply with cuts already in place.

Nymex gasoline futures added just over a cent to $1.37 per gallon in afternoon trade, while May heating oil gained 2 cents to $1.23 per gallon and April natural gas dropped 9 cents to $3.84 per million British thermal units.

Rising equities markets made precious metals look less interesting as an alternative investment, although palladium managed a gain even though demand is expected to decline as a new report seemed to indicate that car sales continue to fall in Europe.

Palladium and platinum both are used in the manufacture of pollution control device for cars and trucks.

April gold was $8.10 lower to $922 per troy ounce while May silver dropped 33 cents to $12.89 per troy ounce and April platinum ended the session in New York down $14.20 to $1,049.40 per troy ounce but June palladium managed a gain of 25 cents to $200.25 per troy ounce.

May copper, on the other hand, added 8 cents to $1.75 per pound while three-month copper added $84 to $3,830 per tonne in London as London Metal Exchange inventories fell 2,775 tonnes during the session to 494,850 per tonne.

Aluminium added $11 to $1,358 per tonne in London even as stockpiles added 5,350 tonnes to almost 3.4 million tonnes, helped by a smaller drop in manufacturing in February than was recorded in January, while zinc, nickel and lead were all also higher, but the price of tin fell.

Grains prices were higher on the Chicago Board of Trade as May corn was up 3 cents to $3.91 per bushel, May wheat added 26 cents to $5.45 per bushel and May soybeans gained 34 cents to $9.11 per bushel.

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