Commodities Wrap 31 August: Palladium Falls 4.64 Percent as Energy Remains Broadly Higher After the Larak Island Strike
Palladium fell 4.64 percent to lead a broad decline across precious metals on Monday, even as the US dollar eased, while energy contracts held the jump that followed the weekend’s US strike on Iranian rocket launchers on Larak Island and Iran’s missile attack on the King Hussein and Al Azraq air bases in Jordan. Jordanian air defenses intercepted all eight missiles; no casualties were reported. West Texas Intermediate was up 2.69 percent and Brent crude 2.45 percent, extending the move already visible in Monday’s Asian session, while ULSD heating oil rose 3.32 percent, the energy board’s largest move. Silver, the wrap’s standing precious metal alongside gold, eased 0.57 percent.
Metals Fall Together Even as the Dollar Eases, With Copper the Exception
The metals board moved almost entirely one way. Palladium fell 4.64 percent to 1,377.50 dollars an ounce, platinum 2.30 percent, gold 0.66 percent and silver 0.57 percent, a spread of 5.24 percentage points between the board’s only gainer and its steepest decliner, on our calculation. Copper was the exception, rising 0.60 percent to 6.6765 dollars a pound.
Friday’s session closed with a firmer dollar; on Monday the dollar eased, yet gold, silver, platinum and palladium all fell regardless. Copper did not follow the rest of the board.
| Metal | Level | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Copper, COMEX (Dec’26), dollars a pound | $6.6765 | +0.60% |
| Silver, COMEX (Sep’26), dollars an ounce | $66.06 | -0.57% |
| Gold, COMEX (Dec’26), dollars an ounce | $4,480.10 | -0.66% |
| Platinum, NYMEX (Oct’26), dollars an ounce | $1,791.00 | -2.30% |
| Palladium, NYMEX (Dec’26), dollars an ounce | $1,377.50 | -4.64% |
Most active contract quotes captured at 19:15 GMT on 31 August 2026, after the settlement window. These are quoted levels, not exchange settlements. Changes are on our calculation against the quoted levels in Friday’s 28 August edition of this wrap, which were themselves post-settlement-window quotes rather than exchange settlement prints. Each row names its delivery month; vendors roll to the next active month at different times. Levels from CNBC.
Energy Extends the Weekend’s Move After the Larak Island Strike
The energy board was uniformly higher following Sunday’s strike on Larak Island. Crude and refined products held rather than faded their post-strike gains, while natural gas also rose. ULSD heating oil led at 3.32 percent, followed by West Texas Intermediate at 2.69 percent, Brent crude at 2.45 percent, natural gas at 1.91 percent and RBOB gasoline at 0.84 percent, a spread of 2.48 percentage points across a board where every contract rose, on our calculation.
Brent’s most active contract rolled to November since Friday’s session, so its 2.45 percent change is measured against the new contract’s own previous close rather than against Friday’s October price, as reported. The other four contracts kept their delivery months from Friday.
| Energy | Level | Change |
|---|---|---|
| ULSD Heating Oil, NYMEX (Sep’26), dollars a gallon | $4.4881 | +3.32% |
| WTI Crude, NYMEX (Oct’26), dollars a barrel | $85.65 | +2.69% |
| Brent Crude, ICE (Nov’26), dollars a barrel | $90.26 | +2.45% |
| Natural Gas, NYMEX (Oct’26), dollars a million Btu | $2.929 | +1.91% |
| RBOB Gasoline, NYMEX (Sep’26), dollars a gallon | $3.5078 | +0.84% |
Most active contract quotes captured at 19:15 GMT on 31 August 2026, after the settlement window. These are quoted levels, not exchange settlements. Changes for WTI, ULSD, natural gas and RBOB are on our calculation against the quoted levels in Friday’s 28 August edition of this wrap. Brent’s change is its own reported change against its new front-month contract’s previous close, since the contract rolled to November since Friday.
Agriculture Board Mixed as Cocoa Leads and Wheat Lags
The agricultural board was less uniform. Cocoa rose 1.99 percent to 6,768.00 dollars a metric ton, the largest move on the board, followed by cotton at 1.65 percent and sugar at 1.31 percent. Coffee added 0.45 percent and corn 0.23 percent, while soybeans were unchanged at 1,287.75 cents a bushel. Wheat was the board’s only decliner, down 1.05 percent, leaving a spread of 3.04 percentage points between cocoa and wheat, on our calculation. Five of the seven contracts rose, one was flat and one fell.
| Commodity | Level | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Cocoa, ICE (Dec’26), dollars a metric ton | $6,768.00 | +1.99% |
| Cotton, ICE (Dec’26), cents a pound | 92.97 | +1.65% |
| Sugar, ICE (Oct’26), cents a pound | 17.79 | +1.31% |
| Coffee, ICE (Dec’26), cents a pound | 314.00 | +0.45% |
| Corn, CBOT (Dec’26), cents a bushel | 537.50 | +0.23% |
| Soybeans, CBOT (Nov’26), cents a bushel | 1,287.75 | 0.00% |
| Wheat, CBOT (Dec’26), cents a bushel | 775.25 | -1.05% |
Most active contract quotes captured at 19:15 GMT on 31 August 2026, after the settlement window. These are quoted levels, not exchange settlements. Changes are on our calculation against the quoted levels in Friday’s 28 August edition of this wrap. Levels are in the unit named in each row.
Rates, the Dollar and Crypto
The US Treasury had not yet published its official daily par yield curve for 31 August at this capture; the most recently published session remains 28 August, when the 2-year stood at 4.34 percent and the 10-year at 4.73 percent, both up from 27 August. Yields were reported higher intraday on Monday, according to CNBC. Separately, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh delivered growth-focused remarks on the opening day of the G20 finance ministerial in Asheville, North Carolina.
The dollar index eased 0.25 percent to 99.416, giving back part of Friday’s gain, while the euro rose 0.26 percent against it and the yen firmed 0.19 percent. Bitcoin rose 2.13 percent and ether 2.04 percent, both moving opposite the precious metals board on the same session.
| Instrument | Level | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Bitcoin, dollars | $79,159.80 | +2.13% |
| Ether, dollars | $2,483.80 | +2.04% |
| Euro/dollar | 1.1615 | +0.26% |
| Pound/dollar | 1.3544 | +0.04% |
| Dollar/yen | 159.76 | -0.19% |
| US Dollar Index (DXY) | 99.416 | -0.25% |
Intraday quotes from the same 19:15 GMT capture on 31 August 2026, measured against each instrument’s quoted level in Friday’s 28 August edition of this wrap, on our calculation.
Why It Matters
Monday’s board split along a line that does not match Friday’s. Precious metals fell together even as the dollar eased, which on our reading points to the interest rate repricing from Warsh’s Jackson Hole remarks, rather than the currency, as the driver still working through gold, silver and platinum. Copper did not follow the rest of the board, preventing the metals complex from recording a uniform decline. Energy told a different story: crude and refined products held the jump that followed the US strike on Iran and Iran’s response against US bases in Jordan. Natural gas also rose, but its domestic fundamentals mean its gain should not automatically be read as part of the same geopolitical trade.
Outlook
Whether precious metals keep falling independently of the dollar will offer further evidence on whether Friday’s rate repricing has become the dominant driver of that board. In energy, the question is whether Monday’s gains hold once markets have had a full session to weigh any further exchange between the United States and Iran and the pace of tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz. The G20 finance ministerial in Asheville continues Tuesday, where any additional comments from Bessent or Warsh could influence the rates narrative, and the US Treasury’s 31 August par yield curve, not yet published at this capture, is worth a follow-up check.
Sources: CNBC, quotes captured at 19:15 GMT on 31 August 2026; its coverage of the Larak Island strike and Jordan missile attack; its coverage of the G20 finance ministerial in Asheville, North Carolina, and Monday’s Treasury market moves; United States Department of the Treasury, official daily par yield curve, 28 August 2026, the most recently published session; The Edge, Commodities Wrap of 28 August 2026.
