Wheat climbed 14 percent in 2014, off to the best start to a year since 2008. The threat of disrupted supplies from Ukraine is adding to supply concerns amid shipping delays in Argentina and Canada, where a rail backlog may cost farmers C$3.5 billion ($3.15 billion) in lost sales, according to a growers group. Dry weather and cold have threatened winter crops in the U.S., the world’s top shipper.

The dispute in Ukraine will probably be resolved by political leaders with a peaceful solution, and the rallies for gold and wheat will fade, according to John Toohey, the San Antonio, Texas-based vice president of equity investments at USAA Investments, which manages about $60 billion of assets in mutual funds.

Biggest Rout

Unprecedented natural-gas reserves in Europe, record world grain output and the threat of mutual economic calamity from oil sanctions are cushioning commodity prices. Wheat prices tumbled 22 percent last year amid ample supplies. Global production will advance 8.6 percent to a record for the season that ends in June, the U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates.

Gold slumped 28 percent in 2013, the biggest rout since 1981 as U.S. equities reached a record and inflation failed to accelerate. Goldman’s Jeffrey Currie said this month the chances are increasing that prices will slump to $1,000 for the first time since 2009.

Purchases of coins, jewelry and bars, which helped fuel this year’s rally, are starting to slow amid the price gains. The China Gold Association says demand in the nation is poised to drop 17 percent this quarter from a year earlier. The country’s economy will probably expand 7.45 percent this year, the slowest since 1990, according to a Bloomberg survey.

“We will see a pullback in gold once the volatile geopolitical situation calms down,” Toohey said. “Demand for most commodities will be impacted as China slows down, and we will see repercussions on prices.”

ETF Flows

Combined net-wagers across 18 U.S.-traded commodities climbed 5.8 percent to 1.686 million contracts, the most since the data begins in June 2006. Investors added $386.1 million into U.S.-based ETFs tracking commodities in the five days through March 13, data compiled by Bloomberg show. Precious metals saw an inflow of $403 million, while $61.8 million was pulled from energy funds.

Bullish bets on crude oil fell 5.3 percent to 328,095 contracts, snapping seven weeks of gains. West Texas Intermediate slumped 3.6 percent last week, the most since Jan. 3. U.S. crude stockpiles rose for an eighth week to 370 million barrels in the seven days ended March 7, the highest since December, according to the Energy Department.