Crude futures swung near 145 U.S. dollars a barrel Monday on mixed news of global supply concerns and dollar tradings.
Light, sweet crude for August delivery edged up 10 cents to settle at 145.18 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Price moved between 142.49 dollars and 146.37 dollars during the trading session.
U.S. President Bush lifted an executive ban on offshore oil drilling on Monday and urged the U.S. Congress to act as well in a bid to cool the high energy prices. However, analysts do not believe that such a move will ease the tight global crude supplies in the short term, because it would take months or years to get actual output from new fields even if the bans were removed.
The dollar gained marginally against the euro and yen on Monday after the U.S. Federal Reserve and the Treasury Department announced unprecedented steps to support the plummeting mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. But the dollar fell against the sterling pound and the Swiss franc. The dollar's mixed trading contributed to the fluctuating of the crude futures.
Meanwhile, supply concerns continued to weigh on the market as Iranian officials said on Sunday that the country would fight back against any attacks and "cut off the hands" of invaders, and the oil workers in Brazil began a five-day strike on Monday. Worries of disruptions of oil production and exportation in Iran, Nigeria and Brazil sent the crude futures to an all-time peak of 147.27 dollars a barrel on Friday.
In London, Brent crude for August delivery fell 57 cents to settle at 143.92 dollars a barrel on the ICE Futures Exchange.
Source:Xinhua
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