Futures Pros – Crude oil futures trimmed losses on Tuesday, retreating from a daily low as the U.S. dollar resumed its decline and as the Federal Reserve was to begin its two-day policy meeting later in the day. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light, sweet crude futures for delivery in June traded at USD112.08 a barrel during U.S. morning trade, edging 0.1% lower. It earlier fell to a daily low of USD111.12 a barrel. The Fed’s Open Market Committee was to begin its two-day meeting later in the day. Investors will closely watch the meeting's outcome for clues on the timing of future Fed rate increases. Fed chairman Ben Bernanke was to hold the first news conference ever by a Fed chief after the two-day policy meeting ended on Wednesday. The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was down 0.14% to hit 74.11. Dollar-denominated oil futures contracts tend to rise when the dollar falls, as this makes oil cheaper for buyers in other currencies. Crude’s losses came after chief executive of Saudi Arabia’s state-owned oil company Saudi Aramco, Khalid al-Falih said that the kingdom was “not comfortable” with current oil prices and that it did not see any tightness in global oil supply. Speaking at an industry conference in Seoul, South Korea earlier in the day, Mr. al-Falih said, “Given recent events in some parts of the Middle East, Saudi Arabia’s additional capacity has been critical in reassuring consumers of uninterrupted supplies.” His comments echoed those of Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi, who said last week that the kingdom had cut oil output in March as the market was oversupplied. Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange, Brent oil futures for June delivery dipped 0.05% to trade at USD123.56 a barrel, up USD11.48 on its U.S. counterpart.

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