Crude oil fell as the dollar climbed the most against the euro in two weeks, reducing the appeal of commodities as an alternative investment. Oil slipped as much as 1.4 percent on the greenback’s advance after European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged and extended some stimulus measures to cement the economic recovery. Prices also dropped as a report showed that the number of contracts to buy previously owned homes in the U.S. declined in January.
“The dollar has been gaining strength, which is having an impact on the energy markets,” said Tom Bentz, a broker at BNP Paribas Commodity Futures Inc. in New York. “We had some bad home sales data, which seems to also be sending prices lower.” Crude oil for April delivery fell 74 cents, or 0.9 percent, to $80.13 a barrel at 10:30 a.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose 1.5 percent to $80.87 yesterday, the highest settlement level since Jan. 11.
Brent crude oil for April delivery declined 83 cents, or 1.1 percent, to $78.42 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange. The dollar traded at $1.3595 per euro, up 0.8 percent from $1.3697 yesterday. The greenback is heading for the biggest gain since Feb. 17. An index of home purchase agreements, or pending home sales, fell 7.6 percent after a revised 0.8 percent increase in December, the National Association of Realtors announced today in Washington.....Read the entire article.
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