Oil hovers above $89 ahead of US supply reports

Gasoline futures up on tighter Northeast supplies
Gasoline futures gained on Tuesday, as a problem at a refinery in the Caribbean contributed to tight supplies in the heavily populated Northeast and promised to help keep pump prices up heading into the New Year. Gasoline rose 2.03 cents to $2.3981 a gallon in midday trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Crude Oil Prices climbed as well, adding 35 cents at $89.72 a barrel. The Hovensa refinery at St. Croix, Virgin Islands, has had trouble restarting a key unit used to process Crude Oil. I...

Gasoline futures up on tighter Northeast supplies
Gasoline futures gained on Tuesday, as a problem at a refinery in the Caribbean contributed to tight supplies in the heavily populated Northeast and promised to help keep pump prices up heading into the New Year. Gasoline rose 2.03 cents to $2.3981 a gallon in midday trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Crude Oil Prices climbed as well, adding 35 cents at $89.72 a barrel. The Hovensa refinery at St. Croix, Virgin Islands, has had trouble restarting a key unit used to process Crude Oil. I...

Oil settles closer to $90
Oil prices rose Tuesday, as traders remained optimistic about improving demand for energy products as millions of Americans travel for the holidays. Here's how energy contracts traded. Crude rose 45 cents to settle at $89.82 per barrel. Gasoline gained 2.07 cents to settle at $2.3985 a gallon. Heating oil added 2.69 cents to settle at $2.5164 a gallon. Natural Gas fell 17.8 cents to settle at $4.237 per 1,000 cubic feet. Brent Crude rose 46 cents to settle at $93.20 per barrel. Will Mrs. Obama d...

Crude oil climbs above $90
NEW YORK, Dec. 21 (UPI) -- Crude Oil Prices climbed Tuesday, adding 68 cents to breach the $90 mark at $90.05 per barrel as equity markets closed higher. The Dollar held steady, the dollar index rising 0.05 percent. Heating Oil Prices on the New York Mercantile Exchange added 2.93 cents to $2.5188 per gallon, finding support from increased demand due to winter weather. Reformulated blendstock Gasoline added 3.43 cents to reach $2.4121 per gallon. Henry Hub Natural Gas prices shed 1.64 cents to ...

Crude oil steady above $89
The sign of a BP gas station is seen in Arlington, Virginia on September 8, 2010. UPI/Alexis C. Glenn NEW YORK, Dec. 21 (UPI) -- Crude Oil Prices held onto Monday's gains overnight, adding 6 cents to reach $89.43 per barrel as equity markets in Asia and Europe looked upbeat. The Dollar lost ground against the euro, which makes Crude Oil priced in U.S. dollars more affordable in Europe. A recent run up has also been supported by a cold snap, which naturally increases demand. Heating Oil Prices on...

Gasoline Futures up on Tighter Northeast Supplies
Source: ABC Gasoline futures gained on Tuesday, as a problem at a refinery in the Caribbean contributed to tight supplies in the heavily populated Northeast and promised to help keep pump prices up heading into the New Year. Gasoline rose 2.03 cents to $2.3981 a gallon in midday trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Crude Oil Prices climbed as well, adding 35 cents at $89.72 a barrel. The Hovensa refinery at St. Croix, Virgin Islands, has had trouble restarting a key unit used to process ...

Gasoline Futures up on Tighter Northeast Supplies
Gasoline futures gained on Tuesday, as a problem at a refinery in the Caribbean contributed to tight supplies in the heavily populated Northeast and promised to help keep pump prices up heading into the New Year. Gasoline rose 2.03 cents to $2.3981 a gallon in midday trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Crude Oil Prices climbed as well, adding 35 cents at $89.72 a barrel. The Hovensa refinery at St. Croix, Virgin Islands, has had trouble restarting a key unit used to process Crude Oil...

Gold prices hold steady
Published: Dec. 21, 2010 at 4:41 PM NEW YORK, Dec. 21 (UPI) -- Gold prices held steady Tuesday in New York as investors moved toward equities, which gained on Wall Street. On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold lost 70 cents to $1,385.40 per troy ounce. Crude Oil Prices for February delivery added 44 cents to $89.81 per barrel. The benchmark 10-year treasury note rose 9/32, causing yields to fall to 3.307 percent from Monday's 3.34 percent. The Dow Jones industrial avera...

Gold up slightly
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange gold gained $5.80 to $1,385 per troy ounce. Crude Oil Prices for February delivery added 79 cents to $88.70 per barrel. The benchmark 10-year treasury note dropped 1/32 causing yields to rise to 3.34 percent. Equities were flat to start the week. The Dow Jones industrial average, which rose 0.7 percent a week go, lost 0.12 percent. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 and the tech-dominated NASDAQ composite index each added 0.25 percent. The...

Opposing View on Energy: Subsidies? Just Say No
The problem with Electric Vehicles can be summed up with one word: subsidies. Subsidies are prima facie evidence that consumers would not buy the product at its market price. Subsidies distort markets, compromising Economic Growth, and are simply wealth transfers. This particular wealth transfer (up to $8,500 for today's Electric Cars and home charging equipment) is highly regressive, robbing from the poor to help a few greenies burnish their green credentials. Deloitte Consulting surveyed...

Economist recommends raising rates to 2% to stimulate lending
Once again, another Economist telling us that we should raise the benchmark Federal Funds Rate to 2%. Steve Hanke is an Economics Professor at Johns Hopkins and a Senior Fellow at the Cato. I would recommend 1.5%, but that is just a guess. Stay tuned as we have a more substantive piece coming up about where the Interest Rates should really be. Via Cato: In the monetary sphere, the Fed has, in a standard Keynesian manner, flooded The Economy with high-powered base money since the onset of the cr...

Boris Johnson under fire after signing sponsorship deal with 'legal loan shark'
The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, has come under fire for signing a sponsorship deal with a high interest loan company. Free travel on London transport this Christmas and New Year will be sponsored by Wonga.com - a loans company offering cash at an eye-watering Interest Rate of 2689 per cent. Wonga.com posters declaring "sometimes you need some extra cash" have been seen across London's transport network. The move has been condemned by Mr Johnson's political opponents, including rival mayor ca...

Oil Heads Toward $100...
The rise in Oil Prices could be just getting started, posing opportunities for investors—as well as challenges for consumers and hopes for US Economic Growth. Consensus estimates are for Oil Prices to rise to the $100-a- barrel range for 2010, a base case that would reflect a steady pace of Economic Growth. In an optimistic scenario, gains of that nature merely would reflect growth in the US economy and would not pose an obstacle to what is expected to be a more sustained pace of recovery...

Higher pump prices may linger into 2011
Those stubbornly high gas pump prices might seem like an unwelcome house guest who overstays his welcome, come January. Drivers in many states already pay at least $3 a gallon for regular and analysts don’t expect any relief soon. That’s because Crude Oil has hovered between $83 and $89 a barrel since Thanksgiving. The national average for regular Gasoline was $2.981 a gallon Monday, according to a survey by AAA, Wright Express and the Oil Price Information Service. ...

Cold weather, Christmas demand fuels oil prices
Crude prices were higher in Asian trade on Tuesday as freezing weather in the northern hemisphere and an expected hike in Gasoline demand during the Christmas holidays drove markets, analysts said. New York's main contract, light sweet crude for February delivery, gained nine cents to 89.46 US dollars. Brent North Sea crude for delivery in February rose 11 cents to 92.85 US dollars a barrel in London trade. "Crude Oil Prices climbed, lifted by strong Gasoline futures ahead of expected holiday de...

Four Reasons Rising Oil Prices Won't Derail the Economic Recovery
Analysts raised their oil-price forecasts this week to a consensus of $86 per barrel by 2011, according to a Reuters poll. That's an increase of $3 per barrel from the November forecast. But if the analysts are right, oil at $86 per barrel will likely have a trivial economic impact: After all, the crude-oil price closed above $89 per barrel Monday. On Monday evening, I appeared by phone (thanks to a sudden snowstorm) on CNBC's The Kudlow Report to debate whether rising Oil Prices will derail ...

Oil Prices Rise on Cold Weather in Europe, U.S.
Oil Prices gained Monday morning as expectations of cold weather in the U.S. and Europe raised demand. U.S. crude for January delivery rose 15 cents to $88.20 a barrel at 7:48 GMT, Reuters reported. ICE Brent for February rose 13 cents to $91.80. "Prices are going back up because of the really Bad Weather in the United States and Europe," said Tony Nunan, a risk manager with Mitsubishi Corp. Cold weather has engulfed much of Europe, disrupting travel across the continent. The U.S. Northeast, t...

China hikes gas, diesel prices as crude rises
China is increasing state-controlled Gasoline and diesel prices after international crude Oil Prices jumped in recent weeks due to higher demand. The National Development and Reform Commission says, starting Wednesday, Gasoline prices at the pump will cost 3.4 cents more per liter — $1.36 per gallon. Diesel will be up 3.9 cents per liter — $1.56 per gallon. Oil prices jumped above $90 a barrel — a two-year high — earlier this month. The economic planning body says the hik...

Oil rises on freezing weather in Europe, U.S
LONDON (Reuters) - Oil Prices rose on Monday as forecasts for continued freezing temperatures in Europe and the U.S. Northeast this week looked set to boost heating fuel demand. U.S. crude for January delivery climbed 48 cents to $88.50 a barrel by 1156 GMT, adding to gains from the previous session. The January contract expires at the end of trading on Monday. ICE Brent for February rose 35 cents to $92.02. "Weather is cold in the Atlantic Basin and particularly in Europe. However pricing snowm...

Pub tale highlights Britain's new community ethos
LLANARMON-YN-LAL, Wales - Bundled up against the cold, Dave Willis and wife Sue shovel snow from the pathway to The Raven Inn. Wendy Holifield carries out the sandwich board and plants it by the pub's stone wall. Inside, Jim Pilkington stokes the fire and checks the beer taps are in order. Britain may be in the grip of a nasty cold snap, but it's business as usual at The Raven Inn. The workers have a big stake in keeping the pub going come rain, shine, sleet, or snow: They're among a group...

China may try new ways to manage bank credit
Beijing | Tue Dec 21, 2010 8:58am EST Beijing (Reuters) - China's Central Bank is considering changing a key component of its Monetary Policy management by altering the way it manages bank credit, three sources close to the matter told Reuters on Tuesday. Under the proposed changes, the People's Bank of China (PBOC) may judge how much a bank can lend by looking at its capital adequacy ratio, Liquidity conditions and provisions for bad loans. That means the PBOC may set different deposit reser...

Engine Makers Sue to Block E15 Fuel
The Environmental Protection Agency’s approval of more Ethanol in the fuel recipe for some cars faces another Federal Court challenge. Most car fuel sold around the country is a mixture of 10 percent Ethanol and 90 percent Gasoline, known as E10, but Ethanol supplies, and Congressional mandates for using ethanol, are rising much faster than the market is absorbing the fuel. So in October, acting on the petition of an Ethanol industry group, the agency approved a 15 percent blend known as ...

Engine Makers, Fuel Retailers Protest EPAs Increased Ethanol Mandate
Ethanol is a fuel most Americans don’t really want to use, but because it’s politically popular with Big Agriculture the politicians jam it down our throats anyway. Ethanol is protected from foreign competition by sky-high Tariffs on imported ethanol, production of ethanol is subsidized and use of ethanol is mandated. Lately, however, the government has been getting a little heavy on the subsidized production end, with more ethanol being produced than used, so rather than recognizing...

Engine Makers Sue to Block E15 Fuel
The Environmental Protection Agency’s approval of more Ethanol in the fuel recipe for some cars faces another Federal Court challenge. Most car fuel sold around the country is a mixture of 10 percent Ethanol and 90 percent Gasoline, known as E10, but Ethanol supplies, and Congressional mandates for using ethanol, are rising much faster than the market is absorbing the fuel. So in October, acting on the petition of an Ethanol industry group, the agency approved a 15 percent blend known as E...

$305 on gas this month - Bah! Humbug!
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Holiday shoppers will need to bump up their Budget for one purchase this year, and they can't even put it under the tree: Gasoline. The price of fuel is up 13.6% from last December and 76% higher from December 2008, according to a new study from the Oil Price Information Service. Email Print Comment Nationwide, drivers spent $305 on gasoline in December. Who's hardest hit? People in Montana. Montanan households are estimated to have spent over $449 a month on gas this...