Crude back below $77 a barrel

17 June 2010

Written by John King

Crude prices were under pressure on the New York Mercantile Exchange this morning (June 17th), with a slump in stocks sending the headline oil contract back below $77 (£52.40) a barrel.

Traders were also reacting to a mixed set of demand figures published by the Energy Information Administration yesterday.

According to the government department, stocks of distillates including diesel and heating oil declined last week, while gasoline inventories rose unexpectedly.

Serene Lim, a Singapore-based oil analyst at ANZ, told Reuters that poor US housing figures also contributed to the decline in crude prices this morning.

"Investors will be quite jittery about the euro, and the strength of the dollar will cap gains in oil," the analyst added.

The dollar has climbed against the euro in recent weeks as traders looked to limit their exposure to the eurozone.

Although the single currency staged a fight-back earlier this week, the momentum now looks to have left the rally, and the greenback is once more on the rise.