Crude oil is predominantly priced and traded in U.S. dollars, although Iran has already accepted payments in some other currencies.
European stock markets gained in early trade Wednesday ahead of second 3-year long-term refinancing operation (LTRO) by the European Central Bank.
India's economic growth slowed to its weakest annual pace in almost three years in the three months to December, as high interest rates and rising input costs constrained investment and manufacturing. GDP rose 6.1 percent in October to December compared with a year earlier, a lower-than-expected increase, figures from the statistics office showed.
Indian gold futures, which struck a two-month high last week, could extend gains to top 29,000 rupees, a level keenly watched by the market, due to higher crude oil prices and weakness in the dollar versus the euro, analysts said.
White House officials Monday welcomed TransCanada's plans to reapply for the Keystone XL pipeline and showed their support for the company's aims to build the southern portion of the controversial pipeline as a standalone project.
BP, Britain's No. 1 oil company is said to be negotiating a $14 billion settlement for the Deepwater Horizon explosion that killed 11 workers and fouled the Gulf of Mexico for months in 2010.
Gold prices fell 1 percent on Monday, in line with the euro, stocks and other commodities, as worries over the euro zone debt crisis and the impact of high crude oil prices on the fledgling economic recovery fuelled risk aversion.
Why is one professional observer so negative about America's short-term economic prospects?
The start of the liability trial for the BP 2010 Deepwater Horizon explosion that killed 11 workers and fouled the Gulf of Mexico for months, has been delayed for a week allowing more time for embattled BP and fellow defendants to broker a settlement with U.S. prosecutors.
A suicide bomber drove a car packed with explosives into a church in the Nigerian city of Jos on Sunday, killing two people and wounding 38, which led to Christian youths beating two Muslims to death in revenge.
With gasoline prices already approaching a distinctly unseasonal $4 a gallon in a presidential-election year, the United States is considering tapping its Strategic Petroleum Reserve as one way to control the prices of crude oil and its derivatives. Herewith is a look at past SPR loans and sales.
The United States did not openly call for a release of countries' strategic petroleum reserves during Group of 20 meetings this weekend, G-20 sources said on Saturday, although the country is considering a release from its own Strategic Petroleum Reserve to stem surging crude-oil prices.
Bank of Japan Gov. Masaaki Shirakawa said on Saturday policy makers are closely watching the impact of looser monetary policy on crude-oil prices. Along with the European Central Bank and the U.S. Federal Reserve, the Bank of Japan is taking unconventional steps to boost the economy.
A rally on Wall Street will be put to the test next week, with the S&P 500 index at its highest closing level since before the collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. in 2008 and the European Central Bank about to flood the financial markets with a new wave of cheap money.
Saudi Arabia has raised crude exports and the United States is considering releasing oil from its Strategic Petroleum Reserve as crude-oil prices hit nine-month highs on Friday and concerns deepened over Iran's nuclear program.
A solid U.S. candidate to head the World Bank would be good for the United States and the bank because the world's largest economy should be represented in top international bodies, outgoing President Robert Zoellick said on Saturday, while emphasizing he has no role in the selection process.
The Standard & Poor's 500-stock index closed Friday at its highest level since June 2008 as a result of the rise of the U.S. stocks subsequent to increasing confidence on revival of economic situation with the approval of the Greece bailout package.
The prices of gasoline and other energy commodities are on the rise -- with further increases just over the horizon -- and it appears that everyone is taking notice.
BP's 2010 Deepwater Horizon explosion that killed 11 and fouled the Gulf of Mexico for months is finally headed for court. On Monday, a federal judge in New Orleans is scheduled to gavel the case to order.
No matter which direction investors faced Friday, whether it was the recent past or the immediate future, all the signals were positive. Investors responded by boosting prices for stocks, bonds and commodities.
Stocks were little changed on Friday, hovering around highs not seen since June 2008, while energy shares gained alongside crude oil prices.
Everyone agrees the days of cheap gasoline are over. The pain at the pump is forcing people to cut down gasoline usage, and there has been a big drop in gasoline demand in the country. At the same time, domestic production is booming, with the number of rigs just in U.S. oil fields more than quadrupling in the past three years.
