Crude oil falls as dollar strengthens

8 June 2009

Crude oil prices slipped back from seven-month highs on Friday to end the week at just over $68 (£43) a barrel.

US crude for July delivery fell 37 cents to settle at $68.44 a barrel, despite having reached a price of $70.32 earlier in the day's trading. London Brent also traded down 37 cents at $68.34 a barrel.

The market was boosted by a US government report which showed that the number of job cuts in the country fell to 345,000 last month - far less than had been expected.

This helped fuel hopes of an early end to the recession that could see global energy demand begin to pick up again and provide oil prices with a further boost.

However, crude's early gains were tempered by a strengthening in the US dollar against the yen and the euro, which reduced demand for commodities among investors and exerted downward pressure on the market.

The reversal may be good news for home heating oil customers, who have seen oil prices increase by more than double this year to recover from lows of close to $30 a barrel last December.

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