Oil Prices Climb on Dollar, Chile’s Earthquake

As of 9:14 am EST, the price of crude had risen by 0.7 percent to reach $80.23 a barrel and the price of heating oil had increased by 1.2 percent.

HEAT USA Price Report

Today’s average retail heating oil price per gallon: Up $0.04
Morning projection (for Tuesday’s average price per gallon): Up $0.03

Oil prices continued to rally on Monday, helped by the dollar’s fall against the euro, which made commodities like crude oil and heating oil cheaper for traders holding other currencies. Weakness in the British pound has helped lift the value of the dollar and cut into gains in the oil market. The earthquake in Chile has disrupted oil production in the country, and while Chile’s fuel consumption is modest when compared to the global oil supply the state energy company has said it will need to increase imports of diesel fuel, giving a boost to oil prices.

HEAT USA price experts report that fluctuations in currency markets could pressure oil prices to fall, but today’s big economic news will likely be the announcement regarding the US manufacturing index by the Institute for Supply Management. If US manufacturing has grown, that will imply increased oil demand and support higher prices.