By SARA LEPRO NEW YORK (AP) -- Precious metals and agriculture futures advanced Friday, getting a boost from a short-lived afternoon rally on Wall Street and the potential for an additional interest rate cut. Energy prices, meanwhile, slumped due to ongoing concerns over demand. Commodities have suffered recently from investors' fears that a global economic slowdown will sharply curb demand for raw materials. At the same time, futures have taken cues from Wall Street, which has swung violently as it searches for a bottom after October's steep losses. Wall Street had another show of volatility Friday, with stocks plunging, recovering and then plunging again on another wave of dire economic news. Hedge fund selling in advance of a Saturday deadline also contributed to the market's gyrations, which set back the Dow Jones industrials almost 340 points. The broader market indexes fell more than 4 percent. But precious metals and agriculture futures, the trading of which ends before the stock market closes, were boosted by the mid-afternoon rally on Wall Street. A speech by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke earlier in the day also seemed to encourage commodities investors. Bernanke said he would work closely with other central bankers to try to alleviate the global financial crisis and left open the possibility of another interest rate cut. The Fed is scheduled to meet Dec. 16 at its last regularly scheduled meeting this year. "Mr. Bernanke, speaking in Germany today, hinted at global central banks standing ready to deliver more of whatever it might take to pry open the tightly shut credit markets and stimulate imploding economies," wrote Jon Nadler, a senior analyst at Kitco Bullion Dealers Montreal, in a note to investors. Interest rate cuts tend to weaken currencies. Commodities are often used as a hedge against inflation, so they tend to rise on word that rates might fall. Gold for December delivery jumped $37.50 to $742.50 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange. December silver rose 69 cents to $9.49 an ounce, while December copper futures rose 8.5 cents to $1.7150 a pound. Grain prices also advanced on the Chicago Board of Trade. March wheat futures rose 15.75 cents to $5.7450 a bushel, while corn for December delivery rose 3.25 cents to $3.8025 a bushel. January soybeans rose 2 cents to $8.96 a bushel. "We got a boost when crude started to trim its losses, the equities trimmed their losses and the dollar gave back some of its earlier gains," said Vic Lespinasse, an analyst for grainanalyst.com. The dollar rose against other major currencies. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note fell to 3.72 percent from 3.85 percent late Thursday. Oil prices fell Friday, despite signals from OPEC that it may slash production again, with the markets instead focused on the most recent reports showing drastic cutbacks in spending and consumption by businesses and consumers. Light, sweet crude for December delivery fell $1.20 to settle at $57.04 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, after falling as low as $56.40 earlier in the session. In other Nymex trading, heating oil futures fell 4 cents to $1.8351 a gallon, while gasoline prices dropped 6 cents to $1.24 a gallon.

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