CRUDE OIL

Persian Gulf oil producing nations are prepared to compensate for any loss of oil in the world market, a senior Saudi official said after Iran amped-up its rhetoric Tuesday about blocking the Strait of Hormuz, a key supply route for the world’s oil.

Crude oil prices gained in Asian trade Wednesday on fears that growing tensions between Iran and Western powers may threaten crude supplies from the Middle East.

Gold prices declined Tuesday as investors sold ahead of the expiration of January options contracts in one of the lightest trading weeks of the year.

Company officials claimed victory over the spill on Christmas day, citing the company's robust response brought a swift end to the spill first reported two weeks ago.

Precious metals drifted lower Tuesday, with the biggest decline coming from palladium, which was down in early trading nearly 2 percent.

Canadian regulators have approved Enbridge Inc's plans to build a new C$180 million ($176 million) pipeline to move oil out of the underserved but prolific Bakken and Three Forks oilfields.

Images from an underwater vehicle proved the company's original fears that the 40,000 barrel leak sprung during the transfer of crude oil from a floating storage facility to an awaiting cargo tanker.

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Asia'a markets rose more than 1 percent and U.S. index futures also gained on Friday, as signs of a strengthening economy in the United States encouraged a year-end bounce for riskier assets.

Asian stocks rose more than 1 percent and U.S. index futures also gained on Friday, as signs of a strengthening economy in the United States encouraged a year-end bounce for riskier assets.

Asian stocks edged up Friday, as signs of a strengthening economy in the United States encouraged a modest year-end rally in riskier assets.

Gold struggled Friday as fund managers booked profits on the yellow metal's gains this year, offsetting the lift it normally would have gotten from rising crude oil prices and stocks.

Nigerian officials said they expect oil leaked from a Royal Dutch Shell offshore well to reach the country's shores Thursday. Shell officials suspect half of the estimated 40,000 barrels of oil leaked in the Atlantic this week have already naturally dissipated or evaporated.

Rising European stocks and a weaker dollar supported gold Thursday, but the yellow metal remained tethered to the previous day's closing price on light volume and a lack of anything that encouraged risk taking.

Imperial Oil Ltd said on Wednesday it will go ahead with an C$8.9 billion ($8.65 billion) plan to double the size of its Kearl oil sands project, even as it said total costs for the massive mining operation have climbed by nearly a quarter.

Gold lost early gains Friday, along with stocks and the euro, as an unexpectedly high number of Eurozone banks queued up for low-interest loans reminded investors of just how widespread Europe's sovereign debt crisis has become.

Global stocks and commodities fell Wednesday as investors shrugged off heavy European Central Bank lending and eyed a troublesome U.S. earnings report.

Gold prices rose Tuesday with other commodities and global equities on unexpected signs the U.S. housing market is turning around and continued improvement in the Eurozone.

Gold prices rose more than 1 percent and silver popped nearly 2 percent Tuesday on fresh evidence the struggling U.S. housing industry is recovering plus rising German business sentiment that boosted investors' risk appetite.

Gold prices hovered in a tight range Monday as doubts that Eurozone banks have enough access to cash and the uncertainties about the severity of the continent's recession offset physical demand from Asian buyers.

The second-biggest slump in gold prices since the financial crisis has rattled bullion bulls, as implied volatility in the gold options market is subdued, suggesting the bullion is seeking to find a new range.