LONDON (AFP) - World oil prices surged this week to the highest level so far this year as investor sentiment was driven by tumbling American crude reserves, the weak dollar and encouraging economic data. Crude oil is... poised for a weekly gain on optimism the prospects for a global economic recovery have improved, said BetOnMarkets analyst David Evans. Oil also won support Friday after news that US existing-home sales blazed a record in July, setting a four-month rally for the first time in five years as the housing market exits crisis, the National Association of Realtors said. Existing-home sales surged 7.2 percent in July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.24 million units in July from a pace of 4.89 million in June. US Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke also delivered an upbeat outlook for the global economy on Friday. However, many commodity markets ran out of steam this week amid uncertainty over a global economic turnaround, despite recent news that a number of major countries have emerged from recession. Despite a growing list of countries officially exiting from recession and a catalogue of leading indicators pointing to an imminent rebound in OECD industrial activity, many market participants are still not convinced, said Barclays Capital analyst Gayle Barry. We think that commodity markets are likely to continue trading in a jittery sideways fashion for some time yet. Recent data showed that France, Germany, Japan, Norway and Portugal all emerged from recession in the second quarter of 2009. OIL: The price of New York oil soared Friday to 74.72 dollars a level last seen on 20 October 2008. Its the dollar... and supportive (US energy inventories) data from Wednesday, said VTB Capital analyst Andrey Kryuchenkov, when questioned about the latest move higher. The European single currency leapt as high as 1.4376 dollars on Friday after a key survey showed the eurozone economy stabilised in August, ending a lengthy run of business contraction. A weaker dollar tends to stimulate demand for dollar-priced crude oil, which becomes cheaper for buyers using stronger currencies. In turn, that pushes prices higher. New York crude has now soared by as much as ten percent in value this week amid rising European and US stock markets. Prices rose sharply on Wednesday after the US Department of Energy (DoE) said American inventories of crude fell a massive 8.4 million barrels last week, indicating that demand was recovering. That snapped a three-week run of gains and took traders completely by surprise, with the market having expected an increase of 1.5 million barrels. Europes main stock markets advanced Friday, extending the previous days gains, as investors welcomed positive data which boosted hopes that Europe is emerging from the global economic crisis. The eurozones purchasing managers index (PMI), compiled by data and research group Markit, rose to a 15-month high of 50 points in August from 47 points in July, adding to other data indicating the recession is bottoming out. By Friday on Londons InterContinental Exchange (ICE), Brent North Sea crude for delivery in October rallied to 74.32 dollars a barrel, from 73.74 for the September contract a week earlier. On the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX), light sweet crude for October jumped to 73.97 dollars a barrel, compared with 71.43 dollars for the September contract one week earlier. PRECIOUS METALS: Gold weakened as the dollar fell in value. The current gold price level is essentially determined by the US dollar and cannot be explained via fundamentals of supply and demand, said Commerzbank analyst Eugen Weinberg. The World Gold Council meanwhile said that the faltering world economy and high prices had curbed demand during the second quarter of 2009. Overall demand for gold fell back from recent high levels as weak economic conditions and high gold prices combined to impact demand, the London-based WGC said in a quarterly report. Total gold demand sank by nine percent to stand at 719.5 metric tonnes in the second quarter, compared with the same period of 2008. That was the lowest level in six years. By late Friday on the London Bullion Market, gold retreated to 952.50 dollars an ounce from 953.50 dollars a week earlier. Silver slid to 14.01 dollars an ounce from 14.98 dollars. On the London Platinum and Palladium Market, platinum eased to 1,239 dollars an ounce at the late fixing on Friday from 1,267 dollars. Palladium slipped to 275 dollars an ounce from 277.50 dollars. BASE METALS: Base metals prices slid. More sideways trading is on the way, with very little news on the agenda before the month ends, Barclays Capital analysts said. By Friday on the London Metal Exchange, copper for delivery in three months sank to 6,105 dollars a tonne from 6,373 dollars a week earlier. Three-month aluminium dipped to 1,925 dollars a tonne from 2,040 dollars. Three-month lead fell to 1,846 dollars a tonne from 1,910 dollars. Three-month tin decreased to 14,050 dollars a tonne from 15,050 dollars. Three-month zinc sank to 1,820 dollars a tonne from 1,871 dollars. Three-month nickel slipped to 19,100 dollars a tonne from 20,625 dollars. SUGAR: Sugar prices fell in London as traders took profits after striking a 28-year high of 589.90 pounds per tonne the previous week. However, global sugar prices are forecast to stay high in the coming year as India, the worlds largest consumer of the commodity, suffers poor weather conditions which force it to rely on imports. By Friday on LIFFE, Londons futures exchange, the price of a tonne of white sugar for delivery in Oct eased to 556.40 pounds from 559.40 pounds a week earlier. On the New York Board of Trade (NYBOT), the price of unrefined sugar for October firmed to 22.25 US cents a pound from 22.18 cents. GRAINS AND SOYA: Prices retreated across the board. By Friday on the Chicago Board of Trade, maize for delivery in December fell to 3.24 dollars a bushel from 3.27 dollars a week earlier. November-dated soyabean meal used in animal feed eased to 9.73 dollars from 9.81 dollars. Wheat for December slipped to 5.02 dollars a bushel from $5.09. COCOA: Cocoa prices edged higher in London and New York. By Friday on LIFFE, the price of cocoa for delivery in December increased to 1,881 pounds a tonne from 1,827 pounds a week earlier. On the NYBOT, the December cocoa contract gained to 2,977 dollars a tonne from 2,880 dollars. COFFEE: Coffee prices beat a retreat. By Friday on LIFFE, Robusta for delivery in November dropped to 1,362 dollars a tonne from 1,429 dollars a week earlier. On the NYBOT, Arabica for Sept slid to 127.30 US cents a pound from 132.90 cents. RUBBER: Malaysian rubber prices drifted lower due to lack of buying interest, dealers said. They said the prices remained high amid a tight supply of the commodity, which caused the investors staying at the sidelines for the week awaiting the prices to drop. On Friday, the Malaysian Rubber Boards benchmark SMR20 dropped to 192.65 US cents per kilo, from 192.80 cents a week earlier.