NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — Crude-oil futures lost some of last week’s strong gains early on Monday, as fresh concerns over sovereign debt in Ireland and Portugal lifted the dollar, pressuring commodities.
Crude oil for December delivery was down 39 cents, or 0.5%, to $86.47 a barrel.
Last week, crude finished at a two-year high benefiting from a broad market rally after the U.S. midterm elections and the Federal Reserve’s announcement of another round of easing measures to boost the economy.
The U.S. October jobs report, meanwhile, showed a much bigger-than-expected increase in nonfarm payrolls, while the unemployment rate held steady at 9.6%.
The dollar index (DXY 77.09, +0.54, +0.70%) , which measures the U.S. unit against a basket of six major currencies, rose 0.6% to 76.997.
“While the main message from [the Fed’s measures] is a weaker dollar and higher commodity prices, the secondary message is the economy is still sick,” said Phil Flynn, energy analyst at PFGBest, in a note. “The mixed messages should lead to wide trading ranges.”
