Heating oil slips further in early trade

16 March 2010

Written by Bob Burton

Heating oil prices were down on the New York Mercantile Exchange this morning (March 16th) as a stronger dollar and anaemic demand dampened appetites for crude products.

As European markets opened, the near-term heating oil contract was trading marginally above $2.05 (€1.49) a gallon, extending losses of nearly four cents yesterday.

Speaking to Reuters, Benson Wang, a crude oil trader at Commodity Broking Services in Sydney, said that traders are staying away from crude due to a rally in the dollar and concerns about energy demand in major markets such as the US and China.

"I think China's economy will undergo a phase of consolidation this year and we probably won't see the boom it went through in 2009," he said.

China has taken a number of steps to cool its economy this year, with policymakers paying particular attention to growth in speculative lending.

The growth in capital funding has provided support for Chinese markets throughout the economic crisis, but banks operating in the country are now under pressure to reduce their debt-asset ratios.

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