Commodities Wrap 14 August: Wheat Jumps 3.1 Percent as Brent Adds 1.5 Percent
Commodities ended the week broadly higher, with agriculture producing the largest moves and crude rebounding. Wheat gained 3.11 percent to 689.00 cents a bushel and corn 2.49 percent to 483.75 cents, the two biggest advances on the board. Brent crude was quoted at 88.38 dollars a barrel, up 1.50 percent, and West Texas Intermediate at 82.31 dollars, up 1.30 percent, per CNBC. The US dollar index fell 0.30 percent to 99.667. Twelve of the seventeen commodity contracts tracked here were higher at the 18:35 GMT capture, our calculation.
Agriculture figures are settlement prices. Energy and metals are late-session quotations captured at 18:35 GMT, after their settlement windows but while both complexes were still trading. Currencies, Treasury yields, the volatility index and Bitcoin trade continuously and are intraday readings.
In energy, RBOB gasoline was the strongest of the complex at 3.1808 dollars a gallon, up 1.69 percent, ahead of Brent and WTI. Heating oil added 0.57 percent to 4.2749 dollars a gallon and natural gas 0.48 percent to 2.740 dollars per million British thermal units. Gasoline outperforming crude is the detail worth marking, pointing to stronger product pricing at the margin rather than a uniform move across the barrel, our reading.
Metals were the exception. Platinum was the standout, rising 1.40 percent to 1,756.50 dollars an ounce, and COMEX gold futures for December 2026 added 0.38 percent to 4,437.00 dollars an ounce. The rest fell: silver was effectively unchanged at 64.985 dollars, down 0.01 percent, copper eased 0.14 percent to 6.5985 dollars a pound and palladium lost 0.22 percent to 1,323.00 dollars an ounce. Three of the five metals we track were lower at the capture, on a day when twelve of seventeen contracts were higher.
Agriculture carried the session. Beyond wheat and corn, cotton rose 1.46 percent to 84.72 cents a pound, cocoa 1.17 percent to 5,786.00 dollars a tonne and soybeans 0.76 percent to 1,191.25 cents a bushel. Two softs went the other way: coffee slipped 0.26 percent to 312.00 cents a pound and sugar fell 1.31 percent to 16.60 cents a pound, the largest single decline of the session.
In rates and the wider market, Treasury yields rose across the curve even as the dollar fell. The 30-year yield added 5.6 basis points to 5.267 percent, the 10-year 5.5 basis points to 4.696 percent and the 2-year 3.1 basis points to 4.171 percent, all our calculation from CNBC levels. The euro gained 0.321 percent to 1.1564 dollars and sterling 0.33 percent to 1.3530. Volatility eased, with the Cboe Volatility Index down 2.12 percent to 14.32, while Bitcoin fell 0.72 percent to 62,893.28 dollars.
Table – Energy, 14 August, ranked by change:
| Instrument | Level | Change |
|---|---|---|
| RBOB gasoline | $3.1808/gal | +1.69% |
| Brent crude | $88.38 | +1.50% |
| WTI crude | $82.31 | +1.30% |
| Heating oil (ULSD) | $4.2749/gal | +0.57% |
| Natural gas | $2.740/mmBtu | +0.48% |
Table – Metals, 14 August, ranked by change:
| Instrument | Level | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Platinum | $1,756.50/oz | +1.40% |
| COMEX gold futures, Dec 2026 | $4,437.00/oz | +0.38% |
| Silver | $64.985/oz | −0.01% |
| Copper | $6.5985/lb | −0.14% |
| Palladium | $1,323.00/oz | −0.22% |
Table – Agriculture, 14 August, ranked by change:
| Instrument | Level | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Wheat | 689.00 cents/bu | +3.11% |
| Corn | 483.75 cents/bu | +2.49% |
| Cotton | 84.72 cents/lb | +1.46% |
| Cocoa | $5,786.00/t | +1.17% |
| Soybeans | 1,191.25 cents/bu | +0.76% |
| Coffee | 312.00 cents/lb | −0.26% |
| Sugar | 16.60 cents/lb | −1.31% |
Table – Currencies, intraday 14 August:
| Instrument | Level | Change |
|---|---|---|
| GBP/USD | 1.3530 | +0.33% |
| EUR/USD | 1.1564 | +0.321% |
| USD/JPY | 159.38 | −0.06% |
| US Dollar Index | 99.667 | −0.30% |
| USD/KWD, CBK | 0.307250 | official rate, 13 August, Kuwait closed |
| USD/EGP, CBE | 50.2189 buy / 50.3551 sell | official rate, 13 August, Egypt closed |
Ranked by change is dropped from this table because the last two rows carry a basis note rather than a comparable percentage. Friday is the weekend in Kuwait and Egypt, so both central banks’ latest published rates are Thursday 13 August.
Table – US Treasury yields, intraday 14 August, ranked by change:
| Instrument | Level | Change |
|---|---|---|
| US 30-year | 5.267% | +5.6 bp |
| US 10-year | 4.696% | +5.5 bp |
| US 2-year | 4.171% | +3.1 bp |
Table – Volatility and crypto, intraday 14 August, ranked by change:
| Instrument | Level | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Bitcoin | $62,893.28 | −0.72% |
| Cboe Volatility Index | 14.32 | −2.12% |
Why it matters: The breadth of Friday’s advance is the fact to hold on to, with twelve of the seventeen contracts tracked here higher at the capture, but the drivers were not uniform and should not be collapsed into one. A dollar index down 0.30 percent is a supportive cross-asset backdrop for anything priced in dollars, and agriculture produced the session’s largest moves in its own right. Metals are the clear exception: only platinum and gold advanced, silver was effectively flat, and copper and palladium fell. That divergence is what tells us the session was not simply a mechanical inverse-dollar trade, and it leaves industrial metals as the weakest point on an otherwise firmer board.
Outlook: The first test next week is whether the grain move holds, particularly after wheat’s 3.11 percent advance, which raises the risk of profit-taking at the Monday open. In energy, gasoline’s outperformance makes refined-product pricing an additional marker to watch next week. The cross-asset signal is the least straightforward part: Treasury yields rose across the curve while the dollar weakened, an unusual pairing, and a renewed dollar advance alongside elevated yields would remove one source of support. Metals remain the divergence to monitor, copper above all if the wider rebound continues without it.
Sources: CNBC. Central Bank of Kuwait, exchange rates, updated 13 August 2026. Central Bank of Egypt, CBE Exchange Rates, value date 13 August 2026.
