MW:Crude-oil futures extend losses on dollar gains
TAIPEI (MarketWatch) — U.S. crude-oil futures extended their fall during Asian hours Tuesday as heightened concerns over European debt troubles pushed the U.S. dollar higher, exerting downward pressure on oil.
Benchmark light, sweet crude for August delivery CL1Q -0.72% fell 65 cents, or 0.7% to $94.50 in electronic trading, on top of a more-than-1% decline in Monday’s regular session on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
The dollar index DXY +0.50% , a measure of the U.S. currency against six other major global units, rose to 76.312 from 75.952 late in New York. The currency rose on worries the European debt crisis might spread to Italy — a country much bigger financially than Greece and Portugal, both subjects of financial assistance from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund. Read about euro group seeking to stop contagion.
“We think the current euro-zone policy framework, which relies on country-specific bailouts, is not workable for Italy, given its size,” Nomura wrote in a currency strategy note to clients.
A rise in the dollar often weighs on commodities priced in dollars, such as crude oil.
Benchmark natural-gas futures NG11Q +0.28% , meanwhile, rose 1.2 cents, or 0.3%, to $4.30 per million British thermal units after sliding as much as 2% overnight.
Varahabhotla Phani Kumar is a reporter in MarketWatch's Hong Kong bureau.
