What's Moving the Oil Markets?

•Crude oil futures lost ground Tuesday as further strength in the US dollar exerted greater influence on prices than concern over tropical storm Gustav, which could head into the US Gulf coast, market sources said.

•The euro fell to six-month lows on data showing weaker consumer confidence and business sentiment in Germany, AFP reported. In late morning trade, the euro sank as low as $1.4589--a level last seen in February. It later pulled back to stand at $1.4602, which compared with $1.4751 in New York late on Monday, the news agency said.

•"The downwards move [in crude] is a bit surprising really, with the potential for hurricanes, but the dollar takes priority today; it has strengthened again," a London-based broker said. "The dollar index will remain a strong directional input and [the market] should be watching the release of the [US Federal Open Market Committee] minutes later today," oil analyst Olivier Jikob of Petromatrix said in his daily report. added.

Updated: August 26, 2008