Ethanol Falls With Gasoline as U.S. Demand Falls to 10-Year Low

Source: Ksenia Galouchko • Bloomberg  • Posted: Monday, February 6, 2012

Feb. 2 (Bloomberg) — Ethanol fell along with gasoline for the first time in three days after the Energy Department reported U.S. demand for the motor fuel reached a 10-year low.

Prices retreated a day after the government reported gasoline supplied to wholesalers sank 1.6 percent last week to the lowest level since September 2001. U.S. ethanol output rose 0.5 percent in the first advance this year. Temperatures in New York City reached 62 degrees Fahrenheit (17 Celsius) yesterday, 23 degrees above normal.

“A mild winter and high prices are curbing demand for gasoline,” Daniel Flynn, a trader at PFG Best in Chicago, said by phone.

Denatured ethanol for February delivery retreated 2.3 cents, or 1.1 percent, to $2.146 a gallon on the Chicago Board of Trade. The contract expires tomorrow. The more-active March contract slipped 2.5 cents, or 1.1 percent, to $2.173 a gallon.

In cash market trading, ethanol in Chicago declined 5 cents, or 2.3 percent, to $2.13 a gallon, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. In the U.S. Gulf, the additive lost 2 cents, or 0.9 percent, to $2.245.

Ethanol on the West Coast fell 5 cents, or 2.2 percent, to $2.245 a gallon and in New York the biofuel retreated 5.5 cents, or 2.4 percent, to $2.23.

Gasoline for March delivery fell 2.33 cents, or 0.8 percent, to settle at $2.8689 a gallon on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Corn futures for March delivery advanced 1 cent, or 0.2 percent, to $6.43 a bushel in Chicago. The settlement was the highest since Jan. 11.

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