The Standard & Poor’s GSCI Spot Index of 24 raw materials fell 0.3 percent to settle at 648.21 at 4 p.m. New York time, led by metals.
The UBS Bloomberg CMCI gauge of 26 prices slid 0.2 percent to 1,547.62.
PRECIOUS METALS
Gold fell, capping the longest run of monthly declines in 16 years, as signs of economic optimism curbed demand for the metal as a haven.
Jobless claims in the U.S. dropped in the week that ended Feb. 23, the government said today. German unemployment unexpectedly fell in February amid signs that Europe’s biggest economy is recovering, and Japan’s industrial production in January rose for the second straight month.
On the Comex in New York, gold futures for April delivery dropped 1.1 percent to $1,578.10 an ounce. This month, the metal tumbled 5 percent, the fifth straight decline and the longest slump January 1997.
