Crude prices retreat as dollar strengthens

• Source: xinhua
• [09:10 June 15 2009]
• Comments

Crude prices retreated on Friday after a three-day rally as US dollars strengthened against a basket of major currencies.

Light, sweet crude for July delivery dropped 64 cents to settle at 72.04 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The contract price dropped to an intra-day low of 70.80 dollars a barrel as the dollar index rebounded as much as 1.4 percent after Japanese Finance Minister Kaoru Yosano said his nation's confidence in US debt is "unshakable," undermining demand for dollar-priced assets such as oil, which are usually used to hedge against inflation.

Meanwhile, some investors locked in profits after oil prices spiked 73 dollars a barrel in the previous session, which also exerted downward pressure to the market.

In London, Brent crude for July delivery fell 87 cents to settle at 70.92 dollars a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.