Crude oil rose in New York as the dollar weakened against the euro and equity markets advanced, reversing a price decline that followed a report of an unexpected increase in U.S. oil inventories.
Oil advanced to more than $77 a barrel as the dollar slipped to $1.2846 against the euro from $1.2737, boosting demand for commodities priced in the U.S. currency. The Europe Stoxx 600 Index rose 1 percent.
“If equities have two or three good days, oil could go to more than $80 a barrel,” said Hannes Loacker, an analyst at Raiffeisen Zentralbank Oesterreich in Vienna.
Crude for September delivery rose as much as 50 cents, or 0.7 percent, to $77.06 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange as of 10:01 a.m. London time. Brent crude for September settlement on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange was up 32 cents at $75.69 a barrel.
Government uses earthquake fears to move people out of Tehran; temblor injures 19.
Dozens of employees of Iran's state-run Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts Industries and Tourism Organization gathered outside parliament this week to protest their forced transfer from Tehran to cities such as Esfahan and Shiraz as part of an effort to disperse government offices in the seismically active nation.The controversy came as a fairly significant earthquake measuring 5.8 on the Richter scale shook the southern Iran early Wednesday morning, Iranian media and seismology monitors reported, injuring at least 19 people.
About 150 employees are scheduled for imminent transfer, while another 1,100 have been notified they could also be moved. But although many countries try to scatter state-owned industries outside the major cities for economic reasons, many Iranians are wary of any attempt to exploit the very real fear of earthquakes for political gain.
Earlier this year, an Iranian cleric made international headlines when he suggested that women who dress too revealingly cause earthquakes by invoking God's wrath.
According to the report of seismography center at Tehran University's Geophysics Institute, a tremor struck close to the Persian Gulf coast at 12:08 a.m. and damaged some homes. The injured included residents of the town of Lamerd, Iranian media reported, where a local relief official told state media that between 50% and 70% of buildings were damaged.
Video of the day.
Wanna see your homes 40 years later. Watch this video to find out when 75% of the people live in urban areas.
http://bit.ly/96hNVc
