Oil Falls Below USD105
Crude fell below USD105 in overnight trade Tuesday morning resuming a near two-week slide as a resurgent U.S. dollar drove investors away from commodities and OPEC appeared set to sit tight on production policy.
Concerns over Hurricane Ike strengthening in the oil-rich Gulf of Mexico were countered by the greenback's surge to a one-year peak against a basket of currencies after the U.S. government's takeover of troubled mortgage financiers.
October crude fell as low as USD104.77/barrel and was at USD105.43 at 8am London time.
Meanwhile Texas oil tycoon T. Boone Pickens said on Monday he continued to believe that crude prices will not fall below $100 a barrel despite falling gasoline demand.
"I think it will hold there. If it does go below, it won't be for very long," Pickens said on the sidelines of a conference in Kansas City, where he was promoting a plan to use domestic natural gas resources to reduce dependence on foreign oil.
Pickens said he expected no moves by OPEC to limit production. The 13-member Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is due to meet Tuesday and analysts were predicting that the group would hold its production ceiling steady.
Concerns over Hurricane Ike strengthening in the oil-rich Gulf of Mexico were countered by the greenback's surge to a one-year peak against a basket of currencies after the U.S. government's takeover of troubled mortgage financiers.
October crude fell as low as USD104.77/barrel and was at USD105.43 at 8am London time.
Meanwhile Texas oil tycoon T. Boone Pickens said on Monday he continued to believe that crude prices will not fall below $100 a barrel despite falling gasoline demand.
"I think it will hold there. If it does go below, it won't be for very long," Pickens said on the sidelines of a conference in Kansas City, where he was promoting a plan to use domestic natural gas resources to reduce dependence on foreign oil.
Pickens said he expected no moves by OPEC to limit production. The 13-member Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is due to meet Tuesday and analysts were predicting that the group would hold its production ceiling steady.
