Commodity Daily News

Stronger Dollar Weighs on Oil Prices

Crude- Oil futures settled slightly lower Monday as a stronger dollar and weak equity markets pressured oil prices. Light, sweet Crude Oil for November delivery settled 11 cents, or 0.1%, lower at $81.47 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after hitting an intraday high of $82.42 earlier in the day.

Futures declined yesterday after stocks fell for the third time in four days and the U.S. dollar advanced against the EUR. A stronger dollar is making the commodity more expensive to purchase as it is denominated in dollars. Putting further pressure on the commodity is the expectation that an Energy Department report tomorrow will probably show crude stockpiles rose last week.

For today traders should follow any news from the U.S. as the direction of the USD will likely affect oil prices.