Article

Commodities: Markets fluctuating, pizza stocks down

Pizza commodities were a mixed bag of good and bad news last week.

July 18, 2016 by S.A. Whitehead — Food Editor, Net World Media Group

Pizza commodities were a mixed bag of good and bad news last week. The rise in cheese prices slowed, and wheat actually dropped in price as did gas and diesel fuel. Natural gas prices increased, while pizza stocks were mostly down with Domino's being the exception. 

Cheese
Cheese prices continue to rise but at a slower rate. Friday, the price was $1.66 — up 3 cents from both the previous week and July 1. 

Wheat
Wheat closed down a cent to $4.97, after a 9-cent jump two weeks ago. 

Gasoline and diesel fuel

The current average price for a gallon of regular unleaded nationwide is $2.21, the same as a week ago, but down 2 cents from the previous month and 55 cents from a year ago when regular unleaded was $2.76 a gallon. Mid-grade gas was down to $2.48 a gallon, compared with $2.49 a week ago, $2.50 a month ago and $2.99 last year. Premium gas was $2.72 on average, the same as the previous week, but down 2 cents from a month ago and down 47 cents from last year. Finally, diesel gas dropped a cent to 2.35 from the previous week's average of $2.36, and it dropped 2 cents from a month ago. Last year, a gallon of diesel was 45 cents higher at $2.80.

Natural gas

Natural gas spot prices rose at most locations outside of the Northeast this report week. The Henry Hub spot price reversed last week’s decline, rising by 6 cents from $2.75/MMBtu last Wednesday to $2.81/MMBtu yesterday, to make up a third of the previous decline.

At the New York Mercantile Exchange, the near-month (August 2016) contract fell, losing about 5 cents and ending at $2.737/MMBtu. Net injections to working gas totaled 64 Bcf for the week ending July 8. Working gas stocks are 3,243 Bcf, which is 19 percent above the year-ago level and 22 percent above the five-year (2011-15) average for this week.

According to Baker Hughes, for the week ending Friday, July 8, the natural gas rig count declined by 1 to 88. Oil-directed rigs increased by 10 to 351, the second consecutive double-digit increase in the oil rig count. The total rig count increased by nine over the week.

The natural gas plant liquids composite price at Mont Belvieu, Texas, fell by 42 cents, closing at $4.99/MMBtu for the week ending July 8. The price of natural gasoline and propane fell 5 percent. The prices of butane and isobutane fell 8 percent and 7 percent, respectively, and the price of ethane fell 14 percent..

Pizza company stocks

Shares in Pizza Hut parent, Yum! Brands Inc., closed Friday at $87.49, down 78 cents from the previous close of $88.27.  
Domino's was up 6 cents to $135.70, from the previous close at $135.64.
Meanwhile, Papa John's dropped 6 cents to $69.08 and Papa Murphy's was off 5 cents to $7.20. 

About S.A. Whitehead

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Pizza Marketplace and QSRweb editor Shelly Whitehead is a former newspaper and TV reporter with an affinity for telling stories about the people and innovative thinking behind great brands.