The dollar kept declining Tuesday, slipping against the euro ahead of a key German investor confidence report. The euro bought $1.3793 in early European trading, up from $1.3784 in New York the previous day. The British pound continued to trade around 26-year highs against the dollar Tuesday, buying $2.0375, slightly above the $2.0371 it bought late Monday in New York. The dollar slipped only marginally to 121.80 Japanese yen from 121.82 yen.

5:30AM Gold dips slightly, oil futures climb sharply, agricultural prices tumble.

August gold dipped $1 to end at $666.30 an ounce on the Nymex.

September silver tracked gold lower, edging down 4.5 cents to $13.065 an ounce.

Nymex copper declined 3.1 cents to end at $3.562 a pound.

Crude oil for August delivery advanced 22 cents to close at $74.15, which is the highest settlement since Aug. 11 last year.

Gasoline futures shed 9.86 cents to $2.1262 a gallon.

Wheat for September delivery lost 19 cents to settle at $6.0175 a bushel.

December corn declined 20 cents to end at $3.485 a bushel;

December oats closed down 18.5 cents at $2.5525 a bushel while November soybeans slipped 50 cents to settle at $8.9875 a bushel.