Crude Oil Back Above $92 a Barrel; Metals Slip

The price of U.S. crude oil is back above $92 a barrel, while gold and other metals futures are lower.

Grains and bean prices are mixed.

Benchmark crude oil for February delivery rose 79 cents to $92.59 a barrel in New York Tuesday. It last closed above $92 a barrel on Friday.

Oil prices rose along with the stock market, which increased 1.1 percent partly on optimism about higher retail sales last month. That could mean demand for fuel, which has been rising in the U.S. in recent months, may continue to grow.

In other energy futures trading, wholesale gasoline fell 1.2 cents to close at $2.622 a gallon, natural gas rose 9.5 cents to close at $4.369 per 1,000 cubic feet and heating oil rose 0.3 cents to close at $2.936 a gallon.

Gold for February delivery fell $5.70 to $1,245.40 an ounce. March silver fell 10.3 cents to $20.282 an ounce.

Platinum for April delivery fell $10.10 to $1,433.80 an ounce. Palladium for March fell $1.10 to $738.90 an ounce.

Copper for March delivery edged down 1 cent to $3.336 a pound.

In March agricultural contracts, corn fell 3 cents to $4.315 a bushel, soybeans rose 12.75 cents to $13.07 a bushel and wheat rose 5.75 cents to $5.793 a bushel.