Copra up in Delhi
In New Delhi, in another wise steady, prices of copra increased by Rs 50 (qtl) to settle at Rs. 4550-5200 from previous close of Rs 4500-5200, due to tight supply from producing centre. The volume of business was small.

Titanium dioxide up inDelhi
In New Delhi, titanium dioxide went up by Rs 6 to close at Rs 100 from previous level of Rs 94, due to fresh demand from rubber manufacturers. The volume of business was small.

Sugar prices improve
In New Delhi, sugar mill gate prices improved on the local sugar market following increased demand coupled with restricted arrivals and closed with fresh gains. However, prices in delhi whole sale market ruled steady due to scattered deals. Sugar mill gate prices khatoli and modi nagar hardened from Rs 1530 and Rs 1465 to close at Rs 1534 and Rs 1468 per quintal respectively. Titabi and amroha also looked up from Rs 1460 and Rs 1420 to settle at Rs 1465 and Rs 1430 per quintal respectively.

US West Coast crude higher
Prices for US West Coast waterborne crudes rose as futures prices pushed higher and the local market remained quiet. No new deals were reported, and the official discount for Alaskan North Slope (ANS) crude stood at $1.75 under benchmark West Texas Intermediate.The nominal price for ANS rose to $17.00/$17.16 a barrel from $16.86/$17.02. "There's nothing going on here," said one trader. Dealers kept their eyes on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX), where continuing optimism that oil producers were slashing production propelled prices to their highest levels in nearly 17 months. Yet demand for crude on the West Coast has been light in recent weeks due to refinery troubles. Tosco Corp's Avon, California refinery has been closed since a fatal fire in February, and Chevron's Richmond facility was reported operating at about 75 per cent. Rumours of a problem with the thermal catalytic cracker at Tosco's 95,000-barrel-per-day refinery in Ferndale, Wash. helped push Northwest gasoline prices higher, but it was unclear if the talk would affect crude prices. Other refiners also said they would not need ANS crude and had sufficient crude oil in inventory.

European gold lower
European gold and palladium prices were lower on Tuesday. Gold was seen slipping tochart support at $285.00 on the back of further producer sales and negative sentiment. Palladium prices, which opened around 4-1/2-month lows, were seen shedding a further $5-10, dealers said. But under $290.00 a troy ounce prices were seen as a buying opportunity.

Asian crude prices up
Singapore oil product swaps rose in trading on Tuesday bolstered by firmer crude prices with fuel oil leading on expectations of a prompt squeeze, traders said. "The market went up mostly because of crude, there is no change to the fundamentals," one trader said. "Fuel oil is outperforming the market because people think there will be a squeeze in May." Traders said fuel oil was putting on a stellar show because there was a strong perception that the market would be bought up heavily in the coming days due to a supply shortfall. May fuel swaps were last quoted at $97.00/$98.00 and June at $95.00/$96.00, up $3.50 from Friday, brokers said. They said June traded earlier in the day at $94.50. Traders said there wassupport in the cash market with little chance of a sell down due to lack of physical barrels.