Commodities gained for the first day in four, led by metals and crude oil amid concerns about tightening global suplies and as Asian stocks rose. Corn and soybeans advanced, while gold slumped. The Standard & Poor’s GSCI Index rose as much as 0.7 percent to 662.64 after dipping to 647.88 yesterday, the lowest intraday level since Aug. 26. The index fell yesterday on deepening concern the European sovereign debt crisis may further slow global economic growth, damping demand for raw materials. The gauge was at 662.54 by 2:41 p.m. in Hong Kong. Crude oil rose as much as 1 percent to $86.84 a barrel in New York on speculation a storm building in the Gulf of Mexico poses a threat to supply in the U.S. amid shrinking crude stockpiles in the world’s biggest consumer. Copper in London climbed 1.2 percent to $9,039 a metric ton amid strike threats at mines in Peru and Indonesia, potentially worsening a global shortage. Gold fell as much as 2.6 percent to $1,827.57 an ounce after reaching a record $1,921.15 yesterday. Some investors “still think commodities as an asset class will fare better than others, even faced with a sovereign debt crisis in developed countries,” Zhu Bin, head of research at Nanhua Futures Co., said by phone from Hangzhou today. “Governments around the world will try to keep interest rates low and loose monetary policies and that will offer a backdrop that’s beneficial for commodities.” Asian stocks gained as Japanese shares jumped after the yen weakened versus the dollar, boosting the outlook for exporters, and after Greece pledged to accelerate austerity measures to help solve Europe’s debt crisis. Gold, Grains Gold dropped for a second day as a rebound in stocks trimmed demand by investors seeking to protect their wealth against falling currencies and economic turmoil. Bullion for immediate delivery traded at $1,844.18 an ounce. “As soon as the market is back to a ‘risk-on’ mode, commodities will have a rally so it’s a good time to buy,” Zhu said. Corn and soybean futures rallied on speculation that dry weather in the U.S., the world’s largest exporter of the grains, may damage crops. December-delivery corn gained 0.6 percent to $7.605 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade. Soybeans for November delivery advanced 0.5 percent to $14.30 a bushel. Rubber also advanced by the most in a week as a weaker yen boosted the appeal of assets denominated in the currency. The February-delivery contract in Tokyo snapped a five-day decline to gain as much as 2.8 percent to 366.3 yen a kilogram ($4,731 a ton) before trading at 366.1 yen. To contact the editor responsible for this story: Richard Dobson at rdobson4@bloomberg.net

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