Currencies

The U.S. dollar was mostly lower against other major currencies in European trading Monday morning. The euro traded at $1.3406, up from $1.3378 late Friday in New York. The British pound traded at $1.9826, up from $1.9751. The dollar bought 123.40 Japanese yen, down from 123.46.


5:30AM Gold climbs Friday on tamer U.S. inflation, crude oil rallies.

Gold for August delivery rose $2.70 to settle at $658.70 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange. August silver rose 9.5 cents to finish at $13.32 an ounce.

Industrial metals climbed. Copper advanced 0.6% on the London Metal Exchange, and zinc, aluminum and nickel gained modestly as well. On the Nymex, July copper futures rose 2.5 cents to $3.4175 a pound, boosted by Xstrata pause on copper shipments from a Montreal refinery, and labor unrest in Latin America.

In the energy markets, crude oil and gasoline prices continued their rally over tight U.S. gasoline supplies. Crude oil futures for July delivery rose 35 cents to settle at $68.00 a barrel on the Nymex, its highest finish since September. July gasoline futures advanced 3.54 cents to end at $2.2601 a gallon.

Dryness in the eastern Corn Belt, along with ethanol demand, kept corn above $4 a bushel. On the CBOT, July corn gained 9.50 cents to end at $4.19 a bushel, and soybeans added 19.5 cents to finish at $8.4725 a bushel.