Brent oil price trading near $77 amid US dollar gains

10 September 2010 10 September 2010

BonTrade

Brent oil prices open Friday’s trading session down at the $77 level as the US dollar gains on the currency markets.

In London, Brent crude oil futures for October 2010 delivery was trading at $77.23, 07.30 GMT on the ICE Futures Exchange after slipping almost a dollar in yesterday’s trading session.

The ICE Dollar Index, which tracks the US dollar against a trade weighted basket of currencies, was up slightly at 82.649 from 82.608.

With the ICE Dollar Index strengthening slightly, Deutsche Bank’s PowerShares US Dollar Index Bearish exchange traded fund was down 0.08% from late Wednesday, while its PowerShares US Dollar Index Bullish was unchanged. The two exchange traded funds are based on Deutsche Bank currency futures indexes, whose composition mirrors that of the ICE’s Dollar Index.

Meanwhile, continued US oversupply of crude oil stocks and concerns about banking problems in Europe continue to weigh on oil prices. Brent oil futures are currently trading at a $3 premium to it’s counterpart, US WTI oil futures.