Crude oil futures rose for a fourth day, the longest winning streak in almost eight weeks, as a weaker dollar bolstered the appeal of commodities as an alternative investment. Oil climbed to the highest level since Sept. 14 as the dollar index, a gauge of the currency versus six major trading partners, fell to the lowest level in more than seven months. Crude also gained as U.S. equity index futures climbed. “The main factor for oil’s resurgence has been weakness in the dollar,” said Phil Flynn, an analyst with PFGBest in Chicago. “Oil, of course, is following the strength in the stock market as well.” Crude for November delivery rose 42 cents, or 0.6 percent, to $76.91 a barrel at 9:03 a.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It’s the longest stretch of daily gains since the four days ended Aug. 3. The dollar index fell 0.1 percent to 79.303, the lowest level since Feb. 3. The Standard and Poor’s 500 Index futures gained 0.2 percent to 1,144.70. Japan, the third-biggest oil-consuming country, is considering a stimulus package of as much as 4.6 trillion yen ($54.6 billion), according to a government official. To contact the reporter on this story: Moming Zhou in New York at Mzhou29@bloomberg.net; To contact the editor responsible for this story: Dan Stets at dstets@bloomberg.net.

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