Oil and gold

Oil prices traded in a narrow range Wednesday ahead of the release of weekly U.S. petroleum inventory data, which is expected to show higher supplies. Light, sweet crude for January delivery fell 10 cents to US$62.33 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange by midday in Europe. The contract had fallen a penny Tuesday to settle at US$62.43 a barrel. January Brent crude at London ICE Futures exchange fell 1 cent to US$63.31 a barrel.

Gold traded in London at $636.75 per troy ounce, down from $643.25 late Tuesday. In Zurich, gold fell to $634.90 from $640.25. Silver fell to $13.62 per troy ounce in London, down from $13.95.

Currencies

The U.S. dollar rose Wednesday against other major currencies in European trading. The euro was quoted at $1.3276, down from $1.3325 late Tuesday. Other dollar rates compared with late rates Tuesday included: 114.97 Japanese yen, up from 114.81; 1.1960 Swiss francs, up from 1.1914, and 1.1425 Canadian dollars, up from 1.1411. The British pound was quoted at $1.9645, down from $1.9743.

5:30AM Gold and silver prices fell Tuesday on stronger dollar, weaker oil.
February gold slipped $3 to settle at $647.90 a troy ounce on the NYME. March silver lost 22 cents to end at $14.025. January platinum settled down $26.30 at $1,133.70 an ounce. March palladium shed 5 cents to finish at $336.40. The most active March copper contract settled up 7.10 cents at $3.2470 per pound.

January crude oil slid 1 cent to end at $62.43 a barrel. January heating oil declined 1.06 cents to $1.7983 a gallon. January unleaded gasoline settled down 3.10 cents to $1.6364 a gallon. December natural gas fell 12.1 cents to close at $7.685 a million British thermal units.

On the New York Board of Trade, Arabica coffee futures raced to 10-month highs after industry-buying curbed a morning dip. December closed 3.20 cents higher at $1.2340 a pound. March futures of raw sugar in foreign ports remained unchanged at 11.76 cents a pound.