Submitted by Fox First at Ten on July 9th
By The Associated Press
Prices for corn, wheat and soybean futures rose sharply Monday as hot weather continues to blanket the Midwest and threaten crops planted there.
The heavily traded December contract for corn shot up 37 cents, or 5 percent, to settle at $7.30 per bushel Monday. Corn has been rising sharply since June 21, when it settled at $5.50 per bushel.
Wheat for September delivery rose 22 cents to $8.2825 a bushel and soybeans for November delivery settled at $15.4775 a bushel, up 42 cents.
Strong demand for soybeans from China also kept prices high.
Scott Strand, an analyst with Northstar Commodity in Minneapolis, said more price increases for grains and beans could be on the way.
"The next 10 days look pretty dry across the Midwest, further reducing the yield prospects for corn," Strand said. "Corn is following the weather very closely, as are soybeans."
Energy prices rose broadly. Crude oil gained $1.54 to $85.99 a barrel, an increase of almost 2 percent. Heating oil rose 3.91 cents to $2.749 a gallon, wholesale gasoline rose 4.34 cents to $2.7594 a gallon and natural gas rose 10.7 cents to $2.883 per 1,000 cubic feet.
Metals prices mostly rose.
Gold for August delivery rose $10.20 to finish at $1,589.10 an ounce. September silver increased 54.4 cents to $27.44 an ounce.
September copper rose 2.2 cents to end at $3.4315 per pound, October platinum edged down $3.60 to $1,445.90 an ounce and September palladium rose $3.55 to settle at $583.90 per ounce.
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