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Oil falls below $144 as jitters ease

Tensions over Iran's nuclear program appear to be letting up.

July 7, 2008: 4:05 AM EDT

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KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) -- Oil dropped below $144 a barrel Monday in Asia on signs of easing tensions over Iran's nuclear program.

Iran on Friday gave an undisclosed response to an international offer of incentives if it suspends uranium enrichment, a central part of its nuclear program that can produce either fuel for a nuclear reactor or the material for a warhead.
A positive response could open the way to renewed negotiations that might help cool tense exchanges over the possibility of a military strike by Israel or the U.S. on OPEC's second largest oil producer. Traders worry such a strike could disrupt already tight oil supplies.
Iranian government spokesman Gholam Hossein Elhma said Saturday that Tehran was ready to negotiate on its program but indicated it would not halt uranium enrichment.
"The Iranian situation turned confrontational last week which raised valid concerns in the oil market (over a possible attack). Now that seems less likely and this is a positive development," said John Vautrain, an analyst with Purvin & Gertz in Singapore.
Iranian state media reported Friday that EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana and Iran's top nuclear negotiator, Saeed Jalili, have agreed to hold the latest in a series of talks in the second half of July.
Midafternoon in Singapore, U.S. crude for August delivery was at $143.54 a barrel in electronic trade on the New York Mercantile Exchange, $1.75 lower than Thursday's floor close.
The contract hit a trading record of $145.85 on Thursday in New York before settling at a record close of $145.29 a barrel. There was no floor trade Friday in the U.S. due to the nation's Independence Day holiday.
Despite the retreat in prices Monday, the market remains bullish following comments by the head of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries over the weekend, said Vautrain.
OPEC President Chakib Khelil said that surging oil prices aren't likely to fall amid strong demand, especially from China and India.
Khelil also told an energy conference in Algiers on Sunday that the steady increases of late were unrelated to supply and demand, blaming the weak U.S. dollar, oil's primary currency of exchange.
Khelil said he believes the reason the dollar has fallen against other currencies is the U.S. decision to lower interest rates in an effort to boost the American economy.
A falling dollar has helped boost oil prices around 50% this year as investors often buy commodities such as oil as a hedge against inflation when the greenback weakens. Also, a struggling dollar makes oil less expensive to investors overseas.
Oil prices are rising amid a drop in stock values worldwide, with most major stock market indices down by double digits since the start of the year.
In other Nymex trade, heating oil futures fell 5.45 cents to $4.0515 a gallon while gasoline prices dropped 3.05 cents to $3.5405 a gallon. Natural gas futures lost 19.3 cents to $13.384 per 1,000 cubic feet. http://money.cnn.com/2008/07/07/markets/oil.ap/index.htm?postversion=2008070704
 
AP
Stocks advance as rising dollar sends oil lower
Monday July 7, 9:42 am ET
By Tim Paradis, AP Business Writer Stocks open higher ahead of start of earnings reports as oil prices pull back below $141
NEW YORK (AP) -- Stocks are up in early trading as investors show their relief over falling oil prices and await the arrival of second-quarter corporate earnings.
There's little economic news expected, so the drop in oil prices appears to be drawing some investors back into the stock market after three weeks of losses. Oil is down more than $5 to under $141 a barrel as the dollar gained strength. The Dow Jones industrial average is up about 94 points at the 11,382 level.
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080707/wall_street.html
 
More on the drop in Oil prices.:D
Oil prices in sharp decline

Crude prices drop more than $4 as dollar gains strength. Traders anticipate comments at G-8 meeting will bolster dollar.

By Kenneth Musante, CNNMoney.com staff writer
Last Updated: July 7, 2008: 9:51 AM EDT

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Oil prices, after hitting a record high last week, fell more than $4 a barrel on Monday as the dollar gained strength and traders reacted to an apparent easing of Mideast tensions.
Light, sweet crude for August delivery fell $4.28 to $141.01 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
On Thursday, oil settled at a record $145.29 a barrel as investors hedged against the heightened possibility of Mideast conflict and other events that might have disrupted the flow of oil over the three-day U.S. holiday weekend, during which time the markets were closed.
"Obviously those fears were overblown," said Phil Flynn, senior market analyst with Alaron Trading in Chicago.
Iran. Concerns of a nuclear Iran eased slightly. The oil producing country gave a confidential response to the international community Friday regarding incentives to suspend uranium enrichment, which can produce fuel for nuclear reactors or atomic bombs.
An Iranian spokesman said Saturday that the country was ready to negotiate, but suggested it would not stop enriching uranium.
"We're all trying to read the tea leaves on the Iranian nuclear situation," said John Kilduff, energy analyst with MF Global in New York.
Dollar. Oil prices were being pulled down by the dollar as currency investors pushed up the value of the greenback.
The dollar was up 4% against the 15-nation euro as the top eight economic powers, known as G-8 nations, began meeting to address the nuclear ambitions of nations such as Iran and North Korea, as well as global warming and the high price of oil.
Many observers expect the G-8 to voice support for the dollar, which has helped buoy the dollar and pull down oil prices, said Flynn.
Oil is traded in dollars, and a weaker U.S. currency can make crude oil contracts less expensive for foreign investors.
Supply and demand. Looking ahead, the U.S. Energy Department will release its weekly petroleum supply report on Wednesday morning.
http://money.cnn.com/2008/07/07/markets/oil/index.htm?postversion=2008070709

 
oil stocks are up, price of oil is down. Oils will take those profits and dump them into oil while price is down...watch price per bbl go up by end of the week.
 
luv2read said:
oil stocks are up, price of oil is down. Oils will take those profits and dump them into oil while price is down...watch price per bbl go up by end of the week.
Click to expand...
I agree, Unless we get a great unknown shot out of the blue? That's not speculation, IS IT?. Of course we all know that kind of a thing is likely to happen at any time!! :o
 
Oil falls below $140 a barrel

Stronger dollar helps crude extend previous session's steep decline.

Last Updated: July 8, 2008: 7:19 AM EDT

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VIENNA, Austria (AP) -- Oil prices swung below $140 a barrel Tuesday after a plunge of nearly $4 in the previous session, as the dollar strengthened and fears of a supply disruption faded.

But analysts warned the pullback was likely to be fleeting.
"The plunge is really a temporary bull correction and is viewed by the market as a buying opportunity," said Victor Shum, an analyst with Purvin & Gertz in Singapore. "We are also seeing the U.S. dollar easing a bit ... and that has helped support oil pricing."
Trader and analyst Stephen Schork said the expectation just a few days ago that crude prices would touch $150 this week now "does not look like the proverbial done deal."
Be that as it may, we have seen this movie before, i.e. crude oil weakens a little and the bubble-bears jump in," he added in his Schork report, suggesting the price respite might be temporary.[more]
http://money.cnn.com/2008/07/08/markets/oil.ap/index.htm?postversion=2008070807
 
Oil slides again

Anticipated weakness in demand and some calm from Iran's leader send futures to their lowest level in nearly 2 weeks

By Kenneth Musante, CNNMoney.com staff writer
July 8, 2008: 9:15 AM EDT

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Oil prices continued to slide Tuesday as investors focused on lower demand for fuel and less bellicose talk from the Middle East.
The price of light sweet crude for August delivery tumbled $3.59 to $137.78 a barrel in electronic trading. It was the lowest level in nearly two weeks, and follows a drop of $3.92 Monday.
A government report scheduled for release Wednesday may indicate lower demand for fuel over the Fourth of July weekend, acccording to Neal Dingman, senior energy analyst with Dahlman Rose & Co.
The government's petroleum inventory report was expected to show an increase in gasoline stocks, which are normally flat or lower over the holiday.
"People are still very much concerned about demand destruction," said Dingman.
While oil use in emerging economies such as China and India continue to increase rapidly, the U.S. still uses nearly three times as much oil as China, the second largest crude consumer, according to the CIA's world fact book. A dip in U.S. demand can have an amplified effect on the oil market.
"The U.S. sneezes, everybody catches a cold," said Dingman.
Expensive fuel. Fuel prices above $4 a gallon continued to weigh on U.S. consumers and businesses.[more]
http://money.cnn.com/2008/07/08/markets/oil/index.htm?postversion=2008070809
 
Oil's 2-day skid at $9 a barrel

Anticipated weakness in demand and some calm from Iran's leader send futures to their lowest level in nearly 2 weeks

By Kenneth Musante, CNNMoney.com staff writer
Last Updated: July 8, 2008: 11:34 AM EDT

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Oil prices continued a post-July 4th descent Tuesday - down about $9 a barrel in two days - as Iran's president downplayed concerns about possible war in the Middle East and investors anticipated falling demand due to high gasoline prices.
The price of light sweet crude for August delivery tumbled $5.29 to $136.08 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It was the lowest level in nearly two weeks, and followed a drop of $3.92 Monday.
Iran. Concerns over supply disruptions in the oil-rich Middle East eased after Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said he did not believe there would be an armed conflict between Iran and Israel or the United States.
At a summit of Muslim nations in Malaysia on Tuesday, Ahmadinejad said he believed the U.S. and Israel have been using propaganda and psychology against Iran, but that he did not see war in the future, the Associated Press reported.
"A lot of tension baked-in over Iran...has dissipated," said Tom Orr, head of research at Weeden & Co. in Connecticut.
Demand predictions. Investors were concerned that a government report scheduled for release Wednesday may indicate lower demand for fuel over the Fourth of July weekend.[more]
http://money.cnn.com/2008/07/08/markets/oil/index.htm?postversion=2008070811
 
Oil billionaire Pickens puts his money on wind power

  • T. Boone Pickens launches plan to reduce U.S. dependence on foreign oil
    Oilman calls for more use of wind power, switch to natural gas to power vehicles
    Pickens' company has announced plan to build world's largest wind farm in Texas
  • Wind turbines could supply 20 percent or more of U.S. power needs, Pickens says
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(CNN) -- Billionaire oilman T. Boone Pickens is putting his clout behind renewable energy sources like wind power.
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Pickens says renewable resources like wind power could reduce U.S. foreign oil dependency by more than a third.

The legendary entrepreneur and philanthropist on Tuesday unveiled a new energy plan he says will decrease the United States' dependency on foreign oil by more than one-third and help shift American energy production toward renewable natural resources.
"The Pickens Plan" calls for investing in domestic renewable resources such as wind, and switching from oil to natural gas as a transportation fuel.
In a news conference outlining his proposal, Pickens said his impetus for the plan is the country's dangerous reliance on foreign oil.
"Our dependence on imported oil is killing our economy. It is the single biggest problem facing America today," he said.
"Wind power is ... clean, it's renewable. It's everything you want. And it's a stable supply of energy," Pickens told CNN in May. "It's unbelievable that we have not done more with wind."
Pickens' company, Mesa Power, recently announced a $2 billion investment as the first step in a multibillion-dollar plan to build the world's largest wind farm in Pampa, Texas.
Pickens said Tuesday that if the United States takes advantage of the so-called "wind corridor," stretching from the Canadian border to West Texas, energy from wind turbines built there could supply 20 percent or more of the nation's power. He suggested the project could be funded by private investors.
Power from thousands of wind turbines that would line the corridor could be distributed throughout the country via electric power transmission lines and could fuel power plants in large population hubs, the oil baron said.
Fueling these plants with wind power would then free up the natural gas historically used to power them, and would mean that natural gas could replace foreign oil as fuel for motor vehicles, he said.
Using natural gas for transportation needs could replace one-third of the United States' imported oil and would save more than $230 billion a year, Pickens said.
"We are going to have to do something different in America," Pickens told CNN. "You can't keep paying out $600 billion a year for oil."
His energy plan could be implemented within 10 years if both Congress and the White House treat the current energy situation as a "national emergency and take immediate action," he predicted.
Pickens, a lifelong Republican, says he is not advising either presidential candidate, but is prepared to work with the next president.
The Web site for the plan urges people to sign up and help spread the word.
Oil analyst Peter Beutel of Cameron Hanover, an energy risk manager, said Pickens' plan could definitely reduce the country's dependency on foreign oil.
"The best thing about it is that it's a definite plan -- it's not something that either party has pitted itself outrightly against. It therefore has a tremendous chance for success on Capitol Hill."[more]
http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/science/07/08/pickens.plan/index.html
 
Pickens was a guest in CNBC some time ago. He spoke of the Wind Belt
in the center of the US. He seemed comitted to his idea. Can he get the
Gov't to back him with financial and tax incentives? Thanks for the article.:)
 
I don't care where we get the energy from, wind, waves, hydrogen, water, compressed air, coal, Oil, Oil Shale, Oil sand, Frog Farts I just want cheap and clean energy.:D
 
It's always something, but Oil is $136.21 at 07:47, not so bad.:D

Oil reverses course after 2-day slide

Crude prices jump nearly $2 a barrel as Iran tensions flare.

Last Updated: July 9, 2008: 5:59 AM EDT

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Thailand (AP) -- Oil prices rebounded Wednesday in Asia from a tumble of more than $5 in the previous session after Iran test-fired nine missiles, renewing fears of a conflict that could cut global oil supplies.

Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards fired nine long and medium range missiles Wednesday during war games officials say are a response to U.S. and Israeli threats, state television reported.
Gen. Hossein Salami, a top Guards commander, was quoted as saying the exercise "is to demonstrate our resolve and might against enemies who in recent weeks have threatened Iran with harsh language."
The drill was conducted in the Persian Gulf and the strategic Strait of Hormuz, through which about 40% of global oil exports pass, and comes less than a day after Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said he sees no possibility of a war with the United States or Israel.
"I assure you that there won't be any war in the future," Ahmadinejad said Tuesday during a visit to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The countries were "focusing on propaganda and psychological war," he said.
Late afternoon in Singapore, U.S. crude for August delivery was up $1.74 at $137.78 a barrel in Asian electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. In the floor session Tuesday, the contract fell $5.33 to settle at $136.04 a barrel.
"Iran is certainly sending mixed signals," said Victor Shum at Purvin & Gertz in Singapore. "There was an apparent easing of tensions, but then the missile tests had an impact on prices today."
Tuesday's drop had hurled crude back to levels not seen since June 26. The market's bearish turn this week erases, at least for the time being, part of a run-up that pushed prices past $145 a barrel in a string of record-setting sessions before the Fourth of July holiday.
Analysts attributed much of the sell-off the last two days [more]
http://money.cnn.com/2008/07/09/markets/oil.ap/index.htm?cnn=yes
 
Gas prices hold in record territory

National average gas price remains at $4.108 a gallon. Alaska has the highest prices while South Carolina has the lowest.

July 9, 2008: 6:27 AM EDT

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Gas prices held steady overnight in record territory, a daily survey by auto club AAA showed Wednesday.
The national average price for a gallon of regular gas remained unchanged at an all-time high of $4.108.
Retail gas prices have risen 38.5% over the last 12 months.
Alaska has the highest gas prices in the nation. Drivers in the state pay an average of $4.615 a gallon. Californians pay an average of $4.552 for a gallon of gas and Hawaiians pay $4.456.
The state with the lowest gas prices is South Carolina, where a gallon of gas averages $3.930.
Diesel prices rose overnight. The national average price for a gallon of diesel fuel increased six-tenths of a cent to an all-time high of $4.813, according to the AAA survey.
The price of diesel, which is used to transport finished goods and raw materials around the world, has increased nearly 65% since last year.
http://money.cnn.com/2008/07/09/news/economy/gas/index.htm?cnn=yes
 
Oil rebounds after Iran missile launch

Investors fret about war and possible blockade, and await the weekly U.S. inventory report.

By Kenneth Musante, CNNMoney.com staff writer

Last Updated: July 9, 2008: 8:50 AM EDT

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Oil rebounded a bit Wednesday from two days of solid losses after Iran test-fired nine ballistic missiles, a move seen by investors as a potential threat to the flow of oil from the Middle East.
Light sweet crude for August delivery rose $1.65 to $137.69 a barrel in electronic trading as investors weighed the impact of the military exercises, and awaited the U.S. government's weekly inventory report.
According to state-owned television, Iran launched nine long- and mid-range missiles as part of a war games exercise. Tests included the firing of a 1,200 mile-range Shahab-3 missile, which is purportedly capable of hitting targets inside Israel. The tests added to concerns over Iran's nuclear program.
Crude prices slid more than $9 a barrel Monday and Tuesday after Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said he did not expect a future armed conflict with Israel or the United States.
A week ago, Iran threatened to blockade the Strait of Hormuz if the country was attacked, sending oil higher. Iran tried to close the strait once before by laying sea mines during the Iran-Iraq war of the 1980s.
"[Iran has] one of the strongholds on the Strait of Hormuz," said Neal Dingman, senior energy analyst with Dahlman Rose & Co.
The strait, which is located just south of Iran and connects the Persian Gulf to the Arabian Sea, is oil's No. 1 chokepoint, according to the Energy Department. Ships carry more than 16.5 million barrels of oil per day - 40% of the world's supply according to some estimates - from Persian Gulf nations such as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Iran.
The threat of reduced production from Iran, the second-largest producing member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, along with a potential blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, gives Iran a powerful economic one-two punch, said Dingman.
Oil inventory. Investors also awaited the petroleum inventory report from the U.S. government, which was scheduled for release at 10:35 a.m. ET.
An estimate from Platts, the energy analysts division of McGraw-Hill, predicted gasoline inventories were up by 500,000 for the week of the July 4 holiday, which may underscore a decrease in demand for refined fuel. Over the holiday, gasoline stocks usually decline or are flat.
Crude stocks were expected to have fallen by 1.9 million barrels.
http://money.cnn.com/2008/07/09/markets/oil/index.htm?postversion=2008070908
 
Oil rebounds as inventory falls

Weekly U.S. report shows larger than expected crude draw, as investors also worry about possible Iran conflict.

By Kenneth Musante, CNNMoney.com staff writer
Last Updated: July 9, 2008: 10:50 AM EDT

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Oil rebounded a bit Wednesday from two days of solid losses after a government report showed crude inventories fell more than expected and Iran test-fired nine ballistic missiles, indicating a potential threat to the flow of Middle East oil.
Light sweet crude for August delivery rose $1.16 to $137.20 a barrel in NYMEX trading after a report from the Energy Department showed crude stocks fell by 5.9 million barrels during the week ended July 4.
Oil was up 99 cents just before the report's release.
An estimate from Platts, the energy analysts division of McGraw-Hill, predicted crude would fall by only 1.9 million barrels.
Gasoline inventories were up by 900,000 barrels for the week of the July 4 holiday, which may underscore a decrease in demand for refined fuel. The increase was more than the 500,000 expected by Platts.
Over the holiday, gasoline stocks usually decline or are flat. [more]
http://money.cnn.com/2008/07/09/markets/oil/index.htm?postversion=2008070910
 
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