03/05/2011

Osama bin Laden

Oil settled lower Monday after the dollar rose in afternoon trading.

Benchmark crude for June delivery fell 41 cents to settle at $113.52 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. In London, Brent crude lost 77 cents to settle at $125.12 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.

Oil dropped below $111 a barrel early Monday, after President Barack Obama announced Osama bin Laden was killed by U.S. forces in Pakistan. The dollar rose at the same time. Oil is priced in dollars, so as the dollar strengthens oil becomes less attractive to investors with foreign currency, and the price falls.
Later in the day, the dollar weakened and oil recovered some ground.

Bin Laden's death represents a tipping point for global oil and commodities prices, and the exit of Libya's Moammar Gadhafi could remove further uncertainty about oil supplies in the region.

The main concerns are the lingering issues of sovereign debt such as Greece, Irland and Portugal and the economic recovery, WorldWatch warns that if the consumer petrol pump prices in Portugal continues to rise, as it is already one of the most expensive in the world, then economic recovery will be a dream.
Gas pump prices are still climbing. The national average for a liter of regular 95 Octane is a staggering 1.641€, the most expensive ever.

No comments:

SOUTH AFRICA SPRINGBOKS

South Africa laid the groundwork with traditional Springbok rugby and finished an out-gunned England side off with two late tries to win ...