Article

Commodities: A week of decreases

The price for cheese, wheat and gasoline decreased, natural gas prices were mixed, and pizza stocks were down.

November 16, 2015 by Travis Wagoner — Editor, Networld Media Group

The price of cheese, wheat and gasoline decreased, natural gas prices were mixed, and pizza stocks were down. Details are below.

Cheese

Average block cheese prices dropped by nearly $1 by the week's end on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. Prices were $1.71 Monday, $1.70 Tuesday, $1.68 Wednesday, $1.62 Thursday and $1.62 Friday. The previous week's prices were $1.62 Monday, $1.62 Tuesday, $1.62 Wednesday, $1.67 Thursday and $1.70 Friday.

Wheat

Wheat prices fell last week to $5.04 on the Minneapolis Grain Exchange, down from $5.19 the previous week.

Gasoline and diesel fuel

Monday's nationwide average for regular unleaded gasoline decreased to $2.16, down from $2.22 the previous week, according to AAA and the Oil Price Information Service.

Prices are down from $2.28 a month ago, and are significantly lower than this time last year, when consumers were paying $2.89 at the pump.

Mid-range unleaded is down 3 cents from $2.46 to $2.43, while Monday's premium unleaded price was $2.66, down 4 cents from last week.

The nationwide average for diesel fuel decreased to $2.47, down 2 cents from $2.49 last week. Diesel prices were also $2.53 a month ago, and are $1 down from a year ago, when prices were $3.63.

Natural gas

Natural gas prices movements were mixed over the report week (Nov. 4-11), but prices remain relatively low. The Henry Hub spot price gained 9 cents per million British thermal units (MMBtu) over the report week, starting the week last Wednesday, Nov. 4, at $2.02/MMBtu, and increasing to $2.11/MMBtu yesterday.

At the New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex), the December 2015 contract remained flat, increasing from $2.262/MMBtu last Wednesday to $2.263/MMBtu yesterday.

Pizza company stocks

Shares in Pizza Hut parent Yum! Brands Inc. closed Friday at $69.47, down from last week's $71.24.

Domino's finished last week at $101.62, down nearly $3 from last week's $104.44.

Papa John's closed Friday at $56.52, down from $57.64 the previous week.

Shares in Papa Murphy's closed Friday at 12.01, down from last week's $12.16. Four weeks ago it closed at $13.99.

About Travis Wagoner

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Travis Wagoner spent nearly 18 years in education as an alumni relations and communications director, coordinating numerous annual events and writing, editing and producing a quarterly, 72-plus-page magazine. Travis also was a ghostwriter for an insurance firm, writing about the Affordable Care Act. He holds a BA degree in communications/public relations from Xavier University.