Article

Commodities: Cheese up; wheat, gasoline and natural gas down; pizza stocks vary

The price for cheese increased; wheat, gasoline and natural gas decreased; and pizza stocks varied.

January 18, 2016 by Travis Wagoner — Editor, Networld Media Group

The price for cheese increased; wheat, gasoline and natural gas decreased; and pizza stocks varied. Details are below.

Cheese

Average block cheese prices increased by 4 cents during the week on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. Prices were $1.46 Monday, $1.49 Tuesday, $1.50 Wednesday, $1.50 Thursday and $1.50 Friday. The previous week's prices were $1.52 Monday, $1.48 Tuesday, $1.48 Wednesday, $1.50 Thursday and $1.54 Friday.

Wheat

Wheat prices decreased 4 cents to $4.97 on the Minneapolis Grain Exchange. It was $5.01 the previous week.

Gasoline and diesel fuel

Monday's nationwide average for regular unleaded gasoline decreased to $1.89 from $1.97 the previous week, according to AAA and the Oil Price Information Service.

Prices are down from $2.00 a month ago, and are significantly lower than this time last year, when consumers were paying $2.07 at the pump.

Mid-range remained decreased 7 cents from last week to $2.18, while Monday's premium unleaded price was $2.42, down 6 cents from last week.

The nationwide average for diesel fuel decreased to $2.15, down 6 cents from $2.21 last week. Diesel prices were also $2.33 a month ago, and 76 cents down from a year ago, when prices were $2.91.

Natural gas

Outside of the Northeast, natural gas spot prices fell at most trading locations during the report week (Wednesday, Jan. 6, to Wednesday, Jan. 13). The Henry Hub spot price fell from $2.35 per million British thermal unit last Wednesday to $2.30/MMBtu yesterday.
 
At the New York Mercantile Exchange, the price of the near-month (February 2016) contract rose by less than a penny, from $2.267/MMBtu last Wednesday to $2.269/MMBtu yesterday.

Pizza company stocks

Shares in Pizza Hut parent Yum! Brands Inc closed Friday at $67.09 down from last week's $68.14.

Domino's finished last week at $104.16, down from last week's $108.97.

Papa John's closed Friday at $48.16, down from $48.63 the previous week.

Shares in Papa Murphy's closed Friday at $10.73, up from last week's $10.26. Four weeks ago it closed at $11.80.

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.