Crude gains as Israeli-Iranian tensions heat up anew
Crude oil futures traded higher in Asian trading on Monday on talk Iran may be stepping up its nuclear program, which sent investors buying on possible supply concerns and ignoring otherwise bearish Japanese …
Crude oil futures traded higher in Asian trading on Monday on talk Iran may be stepping up its nuclear program, which sent investors buying on possible supply concerns and ignoring otherwise bearish Japanese growth data.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light, sweet crude futures for delivery in September traded at USD93.25 a barrel on Monday, up 0.40%, off from a session high of USD93.36 and up from an earlier session low of USD93.17.
Fears that Tehran is stepping up its plans to develop nuclear weapons prompted Israeli to test missile alert systems earlier.
Concerns that the standoff between Israel and its western allies against Iran will reheat and spark supply concerns brought in the buyers on Monday, with investors shrugging off soft economic indicators.
Earlier Monday, Japan reported its gross domestic product grew less than expected in the second quarter, expanding 0.3% according to preliminary figures, below market forecasts for 0.6% and well below the first quarter’s rate of 1.2%.
Last week, China reported earlier that its trade surplus narrowed unexpectedly in July, dropping to USD25.1 billion from a USD31.7 billion surplus.
Economists were expecting a USD35.1 billion surplus.
Meanwhile in Europe, the European Central Bank on Thursday trimmed its forecast for economic growth to 0.6% in 2013, down from 1% previously.
The ECB also forecast a 0.3% contraction in growth this year, slightly worse than its previous forecast for a 0.2% contraction.
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