Bourse

Home page

Bourse

Crude oil pares some of recent gains

20 January 2010 07:46 (UTC +04:00)

Bakuâ€“ APA-Economics. Crude oil fell in New York on concern China may step up efforts to curb credit growth and on a forecast stockpiles in the U.S. will increase, Bloomberg reports.

Oil also pared some of yesterdayâ€™s gains as the dollar strengthened against the euro, reducing the appeal of commodities as investments. Chinese regulators asked some of the nationâ€™s banks to limit lending after banks lent a record 9.59 trillion yuan last year and stocks surged. U.S. crude inventories probably climbed for a third week through Jan. 15, according to a Bloomberg News survey before an Energy Department report tomorrow.
Crude oil for February delivery fell as much as 65 cents, or 0.8 percent, to $78.37 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, and traded at $78.38 at 1:06 p.m. Singapore time. February futures expire today. The more-active March contract declined 63 cents, or 0.8 percent, to $78.69.
Yesterday, the February contract gained $1.02, or 1.3 percent, to settle at $79.02 a barrel. Trades were combined with those from Jan. 18 because of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday in the U.S.
The dollar climbed to $1.4214 per euro as of 1:05 p.m. in Tokyo from $1.4288 yesterday in New York. It earlier strengthened to $1.4188, the highest level since Sept. 1.
Brent crude oil for March settlement declined as much as 61 cents, or 0.8 percent, to $77.02 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange. It was at $77.04 at 12:55 p.m. Singapore time. Yesterday, the contract rose 53 cents, or 0.7 percent, to end the session at $77.63.