Brent oil price finishes near $79 on weak US Dollar Index

Brent oil futures are back near the $79 mark at the close of trading yesterday, with oil prices and commodities moving higher as the US Dollar Index gets hammered below 80 again.

In London, Brent crude oil futures for November 2010 delivery closed the week at $78.87 on the ICE Futures Exchange, only slightly higher than last week’s close of $78.08.

Meanwhile, Brent’s trading counterpart, WTI oil futures closed around four percent up on last week’s closing price and the spread between the two contracts slimmed two around $2.

US Dollar Index Weak & back under the 80 Level

The ICE US Dollar Index, which tracks the US dollar against a trade weighted basket of currencies, was at 79.280 from 80.099, which is its lowest level since January 2010 and around 11 percent lower than recent levels.

The US dollar looks weak and some analysts believe that the Dollar Index could move to the 75 mark before the end of October.

Tracking the US Dollar Index remains one of the most important indications for price movements in Brent oil and WTI oil futures.