SINGAPORE (Commodity Online) : Global oil prices eased in Asian trade Tuesday after an overnight climb on China’s revelation that it would relax its currency's peg to the dollar, raising investor hopes for stronger energy demand.
Light sweet crude for July delivery was seen trading at $ 77.23 a barrel at 11.30 a.m Singapore time while Brent crude was at $ 77.95 a barrel in London.
On Monday, July contract, which expires today, hit a six-week high of $79 a barrel before ending at $77.82 a barrel.
In London, Brent North Sea crude for August delivery rose 60 cents to close at $78.82 a barrel.
In other Nymex trading, heating oil fell 1 cent to $2.1355 a gallon, gasoline was steady at $2.1430 a gallon and natural gas was up 0.4 cent at $4.877 per 1,000 cubic feet.
Oil advanced after China's central bank, the People's Bank of China said it would allow the yuan more flexibility against the dollar, sparking expectations of higher demand for oil and other dollar-priced raw materials that spurred global market rallies.
In US, major oil services companies went to court seeking to overturn President Barack Obama's six-month ban on deepwater drilling in the Gulf of Mexico after the worst oil spill in U.S. history
Oil has jumped from $64 a barrel on May 25 on optimism Europe's debt crisis won't stymie the global economic recovery.
