Crude Oil Ends Flat On Geopolitical Tensions

(RTTNews) - U.S. crude oil ended a tad higher on Friday, after some upbeat data with some better than expected orders for durable goods from the U.S., with investors continued focus on the developments in the Middle East and Ukraine.

Investors continued to monitor the developments in Ukraine and the Middle East, with no let up in the fighting in the Gaza. Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, who is in Cairo, continued with his efforts at bringing about a seven-day ceasefire, with Egypt also supporting the cause.

Elsewhere, nine people were reported killed and several others wounded as Libyan government forces and militants were engaged in some intense clashes.

Russia rejected the U.S. accusations that it had supplied missiles that brought down the Malaysian Airlines passenger jet last week, even as the conflict intensified in eastern Ukraine with increased tensions between Moscow and the West.

In some upbeat economic news, U.S. manufactured durable goods orders rebounded more than expected in June, after reporting an unexpected drop in new orders in the previous month, a Commerce Department a report showed Friday.

Light Sweet Crude Oil futures for September delivery, the most actively traded contract, inched up $0.02 to close at $102.09 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange Friday.

Crude prices for September delivery scaled a high of $ 103.31 a barrel intraday and a low of $102.06.

On Thursday, crude oil futures ended down $1.05 or 1.0 percent at $102.07 a barrel, despite Wednesday's official data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration showing a significant drop in crude oil stockpiles last week.

Soft data on new home sales and U.S. manufacturing activity dragged down oil prices. A downward revision in global economic growth forecast by the International Monetary Fund and profit taking after recent gains also contributed to oil's decline.

The dollar index, which tracks the U.S. unit against six major currencies, traded at 81.04 on Friday, up from its previous close of 80.87 late Thursday in North American trade. The dollar scaled a high of 81.08 intraday and a low of 80.80.

The euro traded lower against the dollar at $1.3431 on Friday, as compared to its previous close of $1.3464 late Thursday in North American trade. The euro scaled a high of $1.3475 intraday and a low of $1.3422.

In economic news from the U.S., orders for durable goods were up 0.7 percent in June, the Commerce Department said. Economists expected durable goods order growth of 0.5 percent month-over-month. Excluding transportation, orders rose 0.8 percent in June, beating expectations for a 0.7 percent increase.

British economic growth remained high as expected in the second quarter with robust expansion in the dominant service sector, and industry completely offset slight weakness in the construction sector. With the second quarter expansion, GDP returned to its pre-crisis level.

Britain's gross domestic product grew 0.8 percent sequentially in the second quarter, the same rate as seen in the first three months of the year, preliminary data published by the Office for National Statistics showed Friday. This was in line with economists' expectations.

German business confidence eased for the third successive month to its lowest level since October, amid rising concerns over the impact of the conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East on the largest eurozone economy.

The Business Climate Index for industry and trade dropped to 108.0 points in July from 109.7 in June, a survey by the Munich-based Ifo Institute showed Friday. The fall was worse than the expected decline of 109.4, and the lowest since October last year that read 107.5.