Oil prices near $96 as Asian, U.S. stocks sinkFebruary 5, 2013 - 09:42 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Oil prices fell to nearly $96 a barrel as energy prices took their cues from sinking stock markets in Europe, Asia and Wall Street, AP reports. Benchmark oil for March delivery fell 9 cents at midday Bangkok time to $96.08 per barrel inelectronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract dropped by $1.60 to finish at $96.17 a barrel on the Nymex on Monday. Oil prices had risen steadily since they traded near $86 a barrel in mid-December on hopes for an improving global economy. But U.S. stock indexes had big declines Monday amid concerns about political stability in Italy and Spain. "The feel-good factor from last week's U.S. data has given way to some profit-taking," said Michael Hewson of CMC Markets. An Italian general election at the end of this month looks like it may not be as clear-cut as many people thought. Meanwhile, Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy denied allegations over the weekend that he and his party received secret cash payments from businesses. Opposition parties are calling for Rajoy to resign. Benchmark stock indexes in both countries endured their steepest drops in months on Monday. Brent crude, the benchmark used to set prices for oil used by many U.S. refineries, fell 46 cents to $115.14 in London. Top stories Yerevan has dismissed Turkey’s demand to shut down the Armenian nuclear power plant as “inappropriate”. Armenia will loan 2.9 billion drams to Nagorno Karabakh (Artsakh), according to a draft government decision. The Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources of Azerbaijan has “strongly condemned” Armenia’s decision. Kerobyan has said that for the first time in the history of Armenia, the volume of foreign direct investments amounted to about $1 billion. Partner news | Armenia, Turkey discuss restoration of historic bridge The meeting took place on May 17 in Ashgabat on the sidelines of an international conference of ministers of culture. EU welcomes Armenia-Azerbaijan “progress” The EU has welcomed “progress” made in the framework of the Armenia-Azerbaijan border delimitation process. Belarus opposition leader slams Lukashenko for Karabakh trip Belarusian opposition politician Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya has harshly criticized the visit of Lukashenko to Karabakh. Mkhitaryan raises arrest of former Karabakh leaders in Azerbaijan Inter Milan star Henrikh Mkhitaryan has shared a news story about the extension of the arrest of former Karabakh leaders. |