Oil fell in New York amid concern that Europe’s sovereign debt situation may weaken fuel demand. The dollar rose to a nine-week high against the euro.
Futures slid as much as 3 percent after Spain’s governing Socialist party suffered its worst electoral defeat in more than 30 years and Standard & Poor’s said on May 20 it may lower Italy’s credit rating. The Dollar Index climbed to its highest in more than nine weeks as declining Asian stocks spurred demand for safer assets.
“External macro factors, especially the strength of the U.S. dollar and the negative start of the week in Asian equities, have weakened commodities,” said Eugen Weinberg, an analyst at Commerzbank AG. “The dollar is higher against the euro because of worries about Europe’s debt.”
Crude for July delivery lost as much as $2.99 to $97.11 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It was at $97.24 at 10:42 a.m. London time.
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