Underpinned by US-Iran Tensions, Capped by Demand Worries
- by Patty Hardy
- in Business
- — Jul 20, 2019
Futures were down 8 cents in NY after erasing an earlier 1.9% increase, heading for the steepest weekly decline since May.
Once more, crude trading on Friday demonstrated that skyrocketing tensions between the USA and Iran are no match for overstated concerns about waning demand and oversupply, as West Texas Intermediate dropped 7 percent for the week and Brent lost about 5.5 percent for the week, the steepest losses for both benchmarks since late May. A US warship "immediately destroyed" the drone that approached the USS Boxer, President Donald Trump said on Thursday at the White House.
Brent for September settlement rose 74 cents to $62.67 a barrel on the ICE Futures Europe Exchange.
Gains are also being supported by indications that the U.S. Federal Reserve will cut rates aggressively to support the economy.
The US military shot down an Iranian drone that came within 1,000 metres of one of its naval vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, President Donald Trump said last night.
Sanders Campaign Workers Demand $15 Hourly Pay
The independent from Vermont has also led the fight to boost the current minimum wage , which stands at $7.25 an hour, to $15. Still, Sanders has been supportive of the effort and the campaign voluntarily recognized staffers' bargaining unit.
SpaceX's Starhopper Engulfed by Fireball During Test
We are not sure why the craft caught on fire so suddenly, or if it was severe in terms of the damage. The company recently released a report on what caused that failure.
STORM AREA 51 CREATOR: I don't want anyone to get hurt
Hitherto cloaked in mystery, the man behind the legend has stepped forward. "It was pretty wild". "I'm kind of anxious about that", Roberts said.
Also on Thursday, two influential Federal Reserve officials sharpened the public case for acting to support the USA economy, reviving bets the central bank may deliver a larger-than-expected cut this month.
Slowing oil demand growth and a persistent global glut will cap oil prices and keep them from rising too much, barring serious escalations in geopolitical tensions, Fatih Birol, the executive director of the International Energy Agency (IEA), said on Friday.
Meanwhile, U.S. energy firms this week reduced the number of oil rigs operating for a third week in a row as drillers follow through on plans to cut spending.
They will not bring a major change in the current markets but will be helpful in the medium and longer term. -China trade spat, Birol told Reuters in an interview on Thursday.
Oil prices at around $65 a barrel priced in tensions relating to Iran, Libya and Venezuela, as well as concerns about the U.S. Kitco Metals Inc. and the author of this article do not accept culpability for losses and/ or damages arising from the use of this publication.
