Commodity Daily News

Oil Prices Steady after Dropping below $112

Crude Oil prices declined yesterday as analysts said market participants appeared reluctant to aggressively push crude in either direction ahead of the start of the two-day Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting Tuesday and a scheduled press conference by Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke on Wednesday. The anticipation of the Fed's statement has caused a dip in USD values, though, which some expect could lift oil back above $112. In the meantime, oil prices are steady.

Reports have also begun to show that high oil prices may be positive for the US in the long-run. US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said a continuation of high oil prices are a strong signal for future US economic growth, but also stated that current prices won't put recovery at risk, according to the Wall Street Journal. This contradiction to the statements of OPEC, President Obama and officials at Aramco gives further impetus to a climb in oil prices, even though today's movement was bearish from previous sentiment. Traders will want to pay close attention to today's Fed statement for indications about where the USD will be heading in the weeks ahead; pushing oil prices in the process.