Despite the many news items that were released yesterday including the weekly update on jobless claims and the Philly Fed manufacturing survey there weren’t sharp turns in the financial markets. Gold and silver price edged up during yesterday. Crude oil prices on the other hand decreased. Natural gas prices continued to trade down. Finally, the Euro changed direction again and edged up against the U.S. dollar, while other currencies such as the CA dollar moderately depreciated vs. the USD.
Here is a summary of the developments in precious metals and energy commodities for April 19th, 2012:
Precious Metals:
Gold price edged up by 0.11% to $1,641.4; Silver price also rose by 1.26% and reached $31.88. During April, gold declined by 1.82% and silver by 1.85%.
The Euro/USD changed direction and rose yesterday by 0.11% to 1.3138; alternatively, the U.S Dollar appreciated against other exchange rates such as the CA dollar.
Oil and Gas:
WTI oil price fell by 0.39% to $102.27 per barrel; Brent oil also declined by 0.42% to $117.44 per barrel;
Following these developments, the difference between Brent and WTI oil prices reached $15.17/bbl. During the month, WTI declined by 0.73% and Brent oil by 5.1%.
The Henry Hub future (May delivery) fell by 2.05% to $1.91/mmbtu; the Henry Hub spot price also plummeted to $1.85/mmbtu; the gap between the spot and future reached $0.06/mmbtu, i.e. Contango.
A Summary of Changes for April 19th:
The table below includes: closing prices, daily percent changes, and daily changes:
For further reading: