Heating oil closing above $2.10 a gallon

24 September 2010

Written by Kim Bardsley

Heating oil futures were steady on the New York Mercantile Exchange this morning (September 24th), under pressure but holding above $2.10 a gallon.

The front-month contract had recovered from early losses by the time European markets opened and was a sixth of a cent lower than yesterday's settle price of $2.1145 a gallon.

Crude futures also saw marginal losses in early trading but were holding above $75 a barrel; both contracts are on course to record gains for the week.

Speaking to Bloomberg, Jonathan Barratt, managing director at Commodity Broking Services Pty in Sydney, said oil is stuck in a trading range and will not break out until signs of economic recovery bolster confidence in the market.

"There is negative sentiment sweeping the market. We've got enough oil. We need to see more confidence going through the economy," he commented, alluding to the persistently high fuel inventories seen in the US in recent months.

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