Benchmark crude for April delivery was down 40 cents to $109.33 per barrel midday Singapore time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose $1.94 to settle at $109.73 in New York on Friday.
Brent crude fell 10 cents to $125.37 per barrel in London.
Crude has soared from $96 earlier this month as stronger US economic indicators bolstered investor confidence. Government figures show crude demand growth has slowed in the US from a year earlier, but some traders are betting a strengthening economy will eventually boost consumption.
"This is what happens when the US begins to climb back up the mountain and recovers," said Larry Carl of Oil Outlooks and Opinions. "America is still the biggest consumer of oil and we are also the most freewheeling buyers."
Investors will this week be closely watching the latest US consumer confidence data and the Federal Reserve's so-called Beige Book report on economic activity.
Concern that tensions over Iran's nuclear program could lead to global crude supply disruptions have also pushed prices higher in recent weeks.
Some investors "fear that the world is headed toward an ugly conclusion of the Iranian nuclear crisis," energy consultant Cameron Hanover said in a report. "The market is discounting an increasingly violent and unwelcome ending."
"If Iran were to allow inspection of its nuclear site, or if it were to come back to the negotiating table, then prices might suddenly sell off," it said.
In other energy trading, heating oil fell 1.5 cents to $3.30 per gallon and gasoline futures slid 0.8 cent at $3.32 per gallon. Natural gas fell 4.3 cents to $2.51 per 1,000 cubic feet.
For the latest updates on the stock market, visit Stock Market Today
Brent crude feb 27 2012,oil futures prices 2/27/2012,Natural gas 2/27/2012, heating oil prices 2/27/2012, energy trading 2/27/2012 For the latest updates PRESS CTR + D or visit Stock Market news Today
No comments:
Post a Comment