Oil edged down on Tuesday for the fourth straight day, relinquishing earlier gains, as fresh concerns about weaker demand in top oil consumer the United States tempted some players to cash in. US crude was down 66 cents to ,20 a barrel by 14.40am GMT, off the day’s high of ,60.
Oil prices were close to $109 in Asian trade on Wednesday, underpinned by the United States dollar’s dive to a new low against the euro and supply concerns, dealers said. In late morning trade, New York’s main contract, light sweet crude for April delivery, traded briefly at $108,90 a barrel, up 15 cents from its record closing high of $108,75 on Tuesday.
Oil eased to under a barrel on Friday, but stayed within sight of its record high from the previous session, with a tumbling United States dollar, fund flows and Opec’s (the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) reluctance to pump extra crude providing support.