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RIYADH: Gold inched lower on Tuesday as the US dollar held firm on rising prospects of more Russian sanctions and bigger interest-rate hikes by the Federal Reserve to rein in inflation.
Spot gold was down 0.2 percent at $1,929.60 per ounce by 0203 GMT.
US gold futures were flat at $1,933.60.
Silver up, platinum down
Spot silver edged 0.1 percent higher to $24.63 per ounce.
Platinum was down 0.1 percent at $984.67 while palladium rose 2.2 percent to $2,326.18.
Wheat up as supply worries loom
US grains futures rose for a second consecutive session on Tuesday, with wheat climbing more than 2 percent, underpinned by Black Sea supply disruptions as Western countries were looking at new sanctions to punish Russia over civilian killings in Ukraine.
The most-active wheat contract on the Chicago Board of Trade, or CBOT, was up 2.8 percent at $10.38 a bushel as of 0400 GMT, the highest since March 30.
CBOT soybean gained 0.4 percent to $16.09 a bushel, while corn climbed 0.5 percent to $7.54.
Copper hits one-week peak
London copper prices rose to a near one-week high on Tuesday, as a drop in output from top producer Chile and the potential for more sanctions on Russia raised risks of supply shortages.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was up 0.3 percent at $10,498 a ton, as of 0434 GMT, after a 1.1 percent gain on Monday.
Ukraine opens new logistic route
On Monday, Ukraine has established new logistics routes for exports, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said.
Ukraine, one of the worlds largest grain exporters, used to ship most of its commodities out via the Black Sea, but with war raging along much of the coast, traders are being forced to transport more grain by rail.
We have formed new logistics routes for the maximum possible renewal of Ukraines exports. We are searching for new possibilities and creating new infrastructure on our borders, he said in a video address.
China books massive deal for US corn
Chinese buyers bought 1.084 million tons of US corn, their most significant purchase of US grain since May 2021, the US government said on Monday.
The deal comes as shipments from Ukraine, the worlds fourth-biggest exporter of corn, are snarled following Russias invasion. China had been a big buyer of Ukrainian corn, and the fighting, which has disrupted the spring planting season, has created uncertainty about their reliability as a supplier.
The US Agriculture Department said the deal was for 676,000 tons of corn to be delivered in the 2021-22 marketing year that ends August 31 and for 408,000 tons to be produced in 2022-23.
USDA said last week that US farmers plan to cut their corn plantings this spring despite the strong global demand, with high prices for inputs such as fuel and fertilizer cutting into potential profits for growing the yellow grain.
(With input from Reuters)
