Crude prices reach year-to-date high in New York

Crude oil prices closed above $70 Tuesday and rose to a year-to-date high at $70.18 in afternoon trade in New York.

West Texas Intermediate crude for July delivery added $1.92 to $70.01 per barrel at the close of floor trade on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while the price for Brent crude remained below the $70 per barrel mark as it traded $1.30 higher to $69.18 per barrel on the ICE Futures Europe exchange in London.

Despite the gains in crude prices, prices at the pump held steady at $2.619 per gallon on average nationally in the US in the same week that last year saw retail prices jump above $4 for the first time ever.

Nymex July gasoline futures were up 3 cents to $1.84 per gallon during the session while July heating oil gained 4 cents to $1.81 per gallon.

July platinum added $13.90 to $1,257.90 per troy ounce in afternoon trade in New York while September palladium, which is also used in pollution control devices and in jewelry, was up $4.20 to $256.20 per troy ounce.

The gains came on concerns that a possible strike in South Africa could disrupt supplies of platinum.

Other precious metals prices were also higher as August gold added $2.20 to $954.70 per troy ounce in New York, while July silver gained 19 cents to $15.14 per troy ounce.

Among base metals prices, meanwhile, July copper added 11 cents to $2.37 per pound in New York while three-month copper gained $200 to $5,180 per tonne in late afternoon trade on the London Metal Exchange, a gain of 4.7 percent in New York and 4 percent in London.

Aluminium prices added 2.5 percent to $1,660 per tonne while lead prices gained 3.7 percent to $1,730 per tonne.

Zinc, nickel and tin prices were also higher in London, gaining 4.7 percent, 4.9 percent and 6 percent respectively.

Grains prices were higher on the Chicago Board of Trade as July corn added 9 cents to $4.44 per bushel while July soybeans were up 11 cents to $12.43 per bushel and July wheat gained 15 cents to $6.13 per bushel.

Story link: Crude prices reach year-to-date high in New York