Crude registers strong gains

17 February 2010

Written by John King

Crude oil prices registered dramatic gains on the New York Mercantile Exchange yesterday (February 16th) and have moved closer towards $78 (£49) a barrel this morning.

Yesterday's rally, which added more than $2 to the price of crude and also sent heating oil prices up, was inspired by a fall in the dollar which made hard commodities more attractive to investors.

The dollar has dampened crude prices in recent sessions as it has soared against the euro, but the latter recovered strongly yesterday, although it is still down around nine per cent from its 2010 high against the greenback.

Speaking to Reuters, Phil Flynn, analyst at PFGBest Research in Chicago, said: "There is this perception that the Greece bailout will pull through and that the problems surrounding its debt will be contained."

EU finance ministers yesterday gave Greece a one-month deadline to introduce measures that will help to alleviate its mounting debt crisis.

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