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U.S. Oil Futures Finish at Four-Month Low

NEW YORK–U.S. oil futures tumbled Friday, falling below $95 a barrel for the first time in more than four months, hurt by a rising dollar against the euro and concerns over a glut of domestic supplies and weak demand. Meanwhile, increasing oil production in Libya sent Brent crude futures down to their lowest settlement value since July 4. The steep declines for crude prices began early in the day amid speculation that the European Central Bank will cut interest rates as soon as its meeting next week amid a report of slowing inflation and a high jobless rate in the euro zone. With the news, the euro fell 0.6% against the dollar to $1.34945, its second straight day of sharp declines. “Crude is priced in dollars, so it should get weak when the dollar is up and that started the selloff here today,” said Tariq Zahir, managing member of […]

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WTI Crude Falls Below $95 First Time Since June on Supply

West Texas Intermediate crude fell below $95 a barrel for the first time since June on surging U.S. stockpiles and as the dollar gained versus the euro, curbing commodity demand from investors. Futures capped a fourth straight weekly decline, the longest stretch of decreases in more than a year. A U.S. government report on Oct. 30 showed that supplies advanced a sixth week. The dollar climbed against the euro for a fifth day on speculation that the European Central Bank will reduce interest rates to spur economic growth. “The supply side has overtaken everything else,” said Phil Flynn, senior market analyst at the Price Futures Group in Chicago . “There’s plenty of oil around and the market is in breakdown mode. We’re also down because the dollar is up against the euro on expectations the ECB will cut interest rates, which is extremely bearish for the market.” WTI for […]

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EPA releases draft climate change adaptation implementation plans

The US Environmental Protection Agency released its draft climate change adaptation implementation plans for a 2-month public review. Comments will be accepted until Jan. 3, 2014. The proposed implementation plans provide detailed information about steps the federal environmental regulatory agency plans to take to help communities adapt to a changing climate under US President Barack Obama’s climate action plan, EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy said on Nov. 1. They recognize that EPA must integrate climate adaptation planning into its programs, policies, rules, and operations to ensure that the agency’s work continues to be effective even as the climate changes, she indicated. The proposals potentially could have significant impacts across the US oil and gas industry. EPA said it released its draft agency climate change adaptation plan on Feb. 9 for public review and comment, and expects to issue the final version this fall. All federal agencies were required to develop […]

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Climate Change Seen Posing Risk to Food Supplies

Climate change will pose sharp risks to the world’s food supply in coming decades, potentially undermining crop production and driving up prices at a time when the demand for food is expected to soar, scientists have found. In a departure from an earlier assessment, the scientists concluded that rising temperatures will have some beneficial effects on crops in some places, but that globally they will make it harder for crops to thrive — perhaps reducing production over all by as much as 2 percent each decade for the rest of this century, compared with what it would be without climate change. And, the scientists say, they are already seeing the harmful effects in some regions. The warnings come in a leaked draft of a report under development by a United Nations panel, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The document is not final and could change before it is […]

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Iran's inflation hits 36.2 pct in 12 months

TEHRAN, Nov. 2 (Xinhua) — Iran’s inflation for 12 months ending on Oct. 22 hit 36.2 percent, 11.4 percentage points up from its corresponding figure last year, Tehran Times daily reported Saturday, quoting the Statistics Center of Iran. On Oct. 27, Iran’s Finance and Economic Affairs Minister Ali Tayebnia said the government planned to reduce the nation’s inflation rate by 6-7 percent by the end of the current Iranian year (March 20, 2014). Through curbing the runaway liquidity growth, the inflation rate is expected to be brought down, Tayebnia was quoted as saying. Adopting proper and efficient monetary and fiscal policies will help curb the inflation rate as well, he added. Also, Valiollah Seif, Governor of the Central Bank of Iran has pledged to control liquidity and bring down inflation, as President Hassan Rouhani has agreed to separate monetary and fiscal policies, giving the bank more independence, according to […]

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Iran’s inflation hits 36.2 pct in 12 months

TEHRAN, Nov. 2 (Xinhua) — Iran’s inflation for 12 months ending on Oct. 22 hit 36.2 percent, 11.4 percentage points up from its corresponding figure last year, Tehran Times daily reported Saturday, quoting the Statistics Center of Iran. On Oct. 27, Iran’s Finance and Economic Affairs Minister Ali Tayebnia said the government planned to reduce the nation’s inflation rate by 6-7 percent by the end of the current Iranian year (March 20, 2014). Through curbing the runaway liquidity growth, the inflation rate is expected to be brought down, Tayebnia was quoted as saying. Adopting proper and efficient monetary and fiscal policies will help curb the inflation rate as well, he added. Also, Valiollah Seif, Governor of the Central Bank of Iran has pledged to control liquidity and bring down inflation, as President Hassan Rouhani has agreed to separate monetary and fiscal policies, giving the bank more independence, according to […]

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Iran criticizes Iraq for increasing crude exports

AP Photo TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran’s Oil Minister says Iraq has increased its crude oil exports to compensate for a fall in Iranian exports as a result of sanctions over Tehran’s suspected nuclear program, calling the policy “not friendly at all.” Bijan Namdar Zanganeh is quoted by the semiofficial Mehr news agency Saturday as saying that Iraq’s oil policies are to Iran’s detriment. Iran’s oil exports are believed to have fallen from about 2.5 million to over 1.2 million barrels a day as a result of a Western oil embargo against Iran over Tehran’s uranium enrichment program. The U.S. and its allies fear that Iran may ultimately be able to develop a nuclear weapon, a charge Iran denies. Iran generally enjoys good relations with Iraq’s Shiite-led government. © 2013 The Associated Press . All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Learn more […]

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Iraq Leader's Visit Shows Strain With U.S.

WASHINGTON—Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki headed back to Baghdad after a strained visit to Washington that fell short of securing more U.S. military aid and exposed divisions about the causes and cures for rising violence in his country. Mr. Maliki wrapped up his three-day visit Friday with a White House meeting at which President Barack Obama praised the Iraqi leader and said the two countries would step up their efforts to uproot al Qaeda militants expanding their operations across the region. But while Mr. Maliki worked to persuade American leaders to free up more U.S. military aid, leading lawmakers expressed dismay over the Iraqi leader’s repeated insistence that he bore little responsibility for the sectarian violence sweeping his country. Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said he was “extremely disappointed” by his meeting with Mr. Maliki and said the prime minister hurt his case […]

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Iraq Leader’s Visit Shows Strain With U.S.

WASHINGTON—Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki headed back to Baghdad after a strained visit to Washington that fell short of securing more U.S. military aid and exposed divisions about the causes and cures for rising violence in his country. Mr. Maliki wrapped up his three-day visit Friday with a White House meeting at which President Barack Obama praised the Iraqi leader and said the two countries would step up their efforts to uproot al Qaeda militants expanding their operations across the region. But while Mr. Maliki worked to persuade American leaders to free up more U.S. military aid, leading lawmakers expressed dismay over the Iraqi leader’s repeated insistence that he bore little responsibility for the sectarian violence sweeping his country. Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said he was “extremely disappointed” by his meeting with Mr. Maliki and said the prime minister hurt his case […]

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MOL reports successful testing of oil area in Kurdish north of Iraq

BUDAPEST, Hungary, Nov. 1 (UPI) — Hungarian oil company MOL said successful testing of an oil reserve area in the Kurdish north of Iraq confirms it as a commercial prospect, MOL said preliminary testing from the Akri-Bijeel reserve area confirmed “long-term production sustainability.” A recent well test produced 3,192 barrels of “light density oil.” “This declaration is another milestone in the fruitful relationship with the Kurdistan Regional Government, which covers not only the lucrative cooperation in the oil and gas industry, but also a wider area in supporting the development of local communities,” Alexander Dodds, MOL’s executive vice president for upstream operations, said in a statement Friday. The semiautonomous Kurdish government is at odds with the federal government over who controls what aspects of the energy sector. Oil from the Kurdish north typically flows north to Turkish export terminals. French energy company Total and U.S. counterpart Marathon said Wednesday […]

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