MW: Crude futures drop as tropical-storm worries ease
By Polya Lesova, MarketWatch
FRANKFURT (MarketWatch) -- Crude futures dropped Monday, as worries that a tropical storm may disrupt oil production in the Gulf of Mexico eased.
Light, sweet crude for August delivery fell 71 cents to $78.15 a barrel in electronic trading on Globex.
The contract had rallied Friday on storm concerns, posting a weekly gain of 2.2%.
Tropical Storm Alex is moving slowly away from the Yucatan Peninsula and could turn into a hurricane later today or Tuesday, the National Hurricane Center said in an advisory.
"Alex reportedly will become a hurricane in the next 48 hours, but direction seems headed toward Mexico and not [in] the direction of rigs and refineries," said analysts at Action Economics.
Energy traders also digested U.S. data showing that the savings rate for American households rose to the highest level in eight months in May, as personal incomes also rose. Read more about the latest economic data.
In the currency markets, the dollar index (DXY 85.45, +0.14, +0.17%) gained 0.2% to 85.486.
