Crude Oil Falls Below $69 as Iran Calls UN Meeting `Positive'
May 19 (Bloomberg) -- Crude oil fell below $69 a barrel in New York after Iran's top nuclear negotiator said talks with the United Nations atomic agency were ``positive,'' easing concern about shipments from the fourth-biggest producer.
The Iranian, Ali Larijani, met with the International Atomic Energy Agency's Mohamed ElBaradei late yesterday in Vienna. Oil rose to a record last month because of the nuclear dispute and eased since then amid speculation that demand will slow as the Federal Reserve raises interest rates to contain inflation.
``Once Larijani said that Iran is looking to let the inspectors in, prices began to fall,'' said Peter Beutel, president of energy consultant Cameron Hanover Inc. in New Canaan, Connecticut. ``The nuclear standoff with Iran has inflated prices. With the Iran worries reduced oil can join the other commodities and fall on inflation and recession concerns.''
Crude oil for June delivery fell 70 cents, or 1 percent, to $68.75 a barrel at 10:10 a.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Futures reached $75.35 on April 21 and 24, the highest since trading began in 1983. Prices are down 4.5 percent this week; they are up 47 percent from a year ago.
``If we can settle beneath yesterday's low of $67.85 we will probably be done with $70 oil for a while, barring a hurricane,'' Beutel said.
Brent crude oil for July settlement declined 69 cents to $68.98 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures exchange. Futures touched $74.97 a barrel May 2 and 3, the highest since the contract began trading in 1988.
`Positive Meeting'
``It was a positive meeting, where ways to move forward were discussed,'' Iran's ambassador to the UN agency, Aliasghar Soltanieh, said today in a telephone interview. Iran pledged to continue allowing inspections required under the nuclear non- proliferation treaty, said Soltanieh, who attended the meeting.
Iran produced 3.85 million barrels of crude oil a day last month, according to a Bloomberg News survey. Nigeria, where supplies have been disrupted by insurgent attacks, pumped 2.08 million barrels of oil a day in April. The two countries account for 7 percent of world production.
``This all part of a broad drop in commodities,'' said Justin Fohsz, a broker at Starsupply Petroleum, a division of GFI Group Inc., in Englewood, New Jersey. ``It's absolute carnage, copper and gold are getting creamed.''
May 19 (Bloomberg) -- Crude oil fell below $69 a barrel in New York after Iran's top nuclear negotiator said talks with the United Nations atomic agency were ``positive,'' easing concern about shipments from the fourth-biggest producer.
The Iranian, Ali Larijani, met with the International Atomic Energy Agency's Mohamed ElBaradei late yesterday in Vienna. Oil rose to a record last month because of the nuclear dispute and eased since then amid speculation that demand will slow as the Federal Reserve raises interest rates to contain inflation.
``Once Larijani said that Iran is looking to let the inspectors in, prices began to fall,'' said Peter Beutel, president of energy consultant Cameron Hanover Inc. in New Canaan, Connecticut. ``The nuclear standoff with Iran has inflated prices. With the Iran worries reduced oil can join the other commodities and fall on inflation and recession concerns.''
Crude oil for June delivery fell 70 cents, or 1 percent, to $68.75 a barrel at 10:10 a.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Futures reached $75.35 on April 21 and 24, the highest since trading began in 1983. Prices are down 4.5 percent this week; they are up 47 percent from a year ago.
``If we can settle beneath yesterday's low of $67.85 we will probably be done with $70 oil for a while, barring a hurricane,'' Beutel said.
Brent crude oil for July settlement declined 69 cents to $68.98 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures exchange. Futures touched $74.97 a barrel May 2 and 3, the highest since the contract began trading in 1988.
`Positive Meeting'
``It was a positive meeting, where ways to move forward were discussed,'' Iran's ambassador to the UN agency, Aliasghar Soltanieh, said today in a telephone interview. Iran pledged to continue allowing inspections required under the nuclear non- proliferation treaty, said Soltanieh, who attended the meeting.
Iran produced 3.85 million barrels of crude oil a day last month, according to a Bloomberg News survey. Nigeria, where supplies have been disrupted by insurgent attacks, pumped 2.08 million barrels of oil a day in April. The two countries account for 7 percent of world production.
``This all part of a broad drop in commodities,'' said Justin Fohsz, a broker at Starsupply Petroleum, a division of GFI Group Inc., in Englewood, New Jersey. ``It's absolute carnage, copper and gold are getting creamed.''
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