Oil prices rise as Obama prepares for ‘fiscal cliff’ talksDecember 26, 2012 - 14:39 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - The price of oil rose Wednesday, Dec 26, after President Barack Obama indicated he would cut his Christmas holiday short and head to Washington to try to work out a deal to keep the U.S. from heading over the "fiscal cliff." Benchmark oil for February delivery rose 49 cents at late afternoon Bangkok time to $89.10 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. On Monday, concerns over the stalemate in Washington drove benchmark oil prices lower, with the contract closing down 5 cents at $88.61 a barrel on the Nymex. Obama was expected to arrive in Washington early Thursday, the White House said, after a brief vacation in Hawaii. Congress was also expected to return to the U.S. capital Thursday and begin budget negotiations. Hopes that U.S. leaders might reach a budget deal helped buoy oil prices. Failure to agree on a plan before Jan 1 would lead to spending cuts and tax hikes that economists predict will push the economy back into recession. Otherwise, the economy is expected to show slight improvement in 2013, a positive for energy consumption and prices. 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 | Czech-Armenian military cooperation discussed in Yerevan A delegation led by the Director General for the Industrial Cooperation Division of the Ministry of Defence of the Czech Republic visited Armenia. U.S. welcomes efforts to define Armenia-Azerbaijan border The United States welcomes efforts to define the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan, says Vedant Patel. Biden honors resilience of Armenian people on April 24 U.S. President Joe Biden has issued a statement on the 109th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. Ex-Karabakh leader moved to solitary confinement cell in Baku, his son says David Vardanyan is the son of former Karabakh leader Ruben Vardanyan who who is currently imprisoned in Azerbaijan. |