Brent oil hits $113 a barrelFebruary 24, 2011 - 12:13 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Unrest in Libya and the threat of contagion to other oil producing countries in the region drove Brent crude to $113 a barrel on Feb 24, but the selloff in Asian stocks eased as investors started to nibble at beaten-down shares. Copper also bounced off one-month lows, although the dollar stayed on the back foot as some investors worry that the U.S. economy would be vulnerable to high oil prices, given its reliance on consumer spending to drive growth. London Brent crude rose as high as $113 a barrel for the first time since September 2008, having gained nearly 10 percent in the past four sessions. U.S. crude last traded at around $99.38 a barrel, a whisker away from Feb 23 high of $100, according to Financial Mirror. Worries that higher energy prices will crimp corporate profits had sparked a steep selloff in Asian stocks in the past two sessions, but that looked to be losing its punch. Gold , a traditional safe haven in times of trouble, traded at around $1,412 an ounce, not far from a record high around $1,430 set in December. Copper gained 1.1 percent to $9,526 a ton, climbing off a one-month low of $9,365. 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 | The Power of One Dram to benefit Road of Life charity The companies inform that the May beneficiary of The Power of One Dram is the “Road of Life” charitable organization. Ucom General Director gives lecture at French University in Armenia The General Director of Ucom Ralph Yirikian delivered a lecture at the French University of Armenia. Kazakhstan welcomes Yerevan, Baku’s agreement to meet in Almaty Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has welcomed the agreement of Baku and Yerevan to hold negotiations in Almaty. Armenia offers to temporarily host, preserve Gaza manuscripts The Armenian Foreign Minister has said Yerevan is ready to help preserve manuscripts from the conflict zone in Gaza. |