Commodities wrapped up a strong November by posting price gains, especially metals and energy products.
The star performers were silver, palladium and gasoline. Gold traded above $1,400 an ounce for the first time, silver set a settlement high for the year and oil hit a two-year high.
Much of the movement came amid shifts in the global economy. Early optimism about improving economies in Asia and emerging countries has given way to more recent concerns about European debt problems and the impact of China's actions to slow its robust growth.
Silver was the standout for the month with a 14.4 percent increase. The metal benefited from its reputation as a safer place to park money during uncertain times and also for its use in consumer electronics, batteries and solar energy products.
It was the safe-haven side that boosted silver Tuesday amid ongoing concerns about whether Europe's financial problems will spread to other countries such as Portugal, Spain and Italy.
The other issue boosting silver is still unresolved tensions between North Korea and South Korea, CPM Group senior commodity analyst Rohit Savant said.
Silver for March delivery added $1.019, or 3.7 percent, to settle at $28.212 an ounce. Earlier in the month, it hit a high for the year of $28.906 an ounce.
Investors also poured money into gold, sending it to $1,410.10 an ounce on Nov. 9. It was a record in dollar terms but well below its peak in the early 1980s after accounting for inflation.
On Tuesday, gold for February delivery added $18.60 to settle at $1,386.10 an ounce.
In other metals trading, December palladium rose $7.95 to settle at $700.95 an ounce. That's up 8.6 percent for November. January platinum added $21.80 to settle at $1,666.40 an ounce. That's a decline of 2.6 percent since Nov. 1.
March copper rose 5.8 cents to at $3.8255 a pound, which was 2.4 percent higher than it began the month.
In other trading, oil and other energy products all posted price gains for the month, with gasoline leading the way with an increase of about 7 percent.
Oil prices set a two-year high just above $88 a barrel on Nov. 11, buoyed by improving economies in Asia and emerging nations. U.S. and European inventories also were declining and new forecasts from OPEC and others predicted stronger demand.
Benchmark oil for January delivery fell $1.62 to settle Tuesday at $84.11 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, which was a 3.9 percent gain for the month.
In other December Nymex contracts, gasoline lost 1.94 cents to $2.2652 a gallon and heating oil slipped 4.12 cents to settle at $2.3169 a gallon.
January natural gas gave up 3 cents to settle at $4.180 per 1,000 cubic feet.
Wheat and corn both ended November on a lower note, while soybeans rose less than 1 percent.
Wheat for March delivery was unchanged at $6.9050 a bushel, March corn fell 9.25 cents to $5.44 a bushel and January soybeans gained 8 cents to $12.43 a bushel.
