Crude leads commodities to higher closing

NEW YORK, June 25 (UPI) -- Crude oil prices closed up 3.1 percent Friday, at $78.86 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange amid fears of a possible Caribbean tropical storm.

It was the commodity's largest one-day gain since June 9, MarketWatch.com said. The weekly gain of 2.2 percent marks the third straight weekly rise.

"We are putting some storm premium ahead of the weekend," as a potentially powerful storm bears down on the Gulf of Mexico, threatening production and refining operations there, Jim Ritterbusch with Ritterbusch and Associates of Galena, Ill., told MarketWatch.

Gasoline prices rose 7 cents, or 3.4 percent, to $2.15 a gallon. It was gasoline's largest one-day gain since May 27, and brought weekly gains to 0.5 percent.

Natural gas settled 2.4 percent higher, adding 11 cents to finish at $4.89 per million British thermal units. Home heating oil added 6 cents, or 2.7 percent, by the end of the trading day to close at $2.11 a gallon.

At the pump, the national average price for unleaded regular gasoline rose to $2.755 per gallon from Thursday's $2.753, AAA said.