NEW YORK, March 31 (Xinhua) -- Crude tumbled nearly 4 percent to close below 102 U.S. dollars Monday amid a wider commodity selloff.
Crude for May delivery dropped 4.04, or 3.8 percent, to settle at 101.58 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It earlier fell to an intraday low of 100.25 dollars. Crude ended the first quarter's trading up 5.6 dollars, or 5.8 percent.
Traders have begun selling off a wide range of commodities, from precious metals and gasoline to pork bellies and soybeans. The price of gold, for instance, dropped 16.50 dollars to 914.10 dollars on the Nymex.
Speculators have poured money into commodities in recent weeks as a hedge against inflation and a weakening dollar, which neared its all-time low against the euro Monday.
But as the first quarter came to a close and contracts for heating oil were set to expire, traders unwound some of those trades. Market observers said the sales may have been to settle open future positions and lock in profits, or simply because of a lack of headlines that would entice fresh buying, according to the Associated Press.
Crude for May delivery dropped 4.04, or 3.8 percent, to settle at 101.58 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It earlier fell to an intraday low of 100.25 dollars. Crude ended the first quarter's trading up 5.6 dollars, or 5.8 percent.
Traders have begun selling off a wide range of commodities, from precious metals and gasoline to pork bellies and soybeans. The price of gold, for instance, dropped 16.50 dollars to 914.10 dollars on the Nymex.
Speculators have poured money into commodities in recent weeks as a hedge against inflation and a weakening dollar, which neared its all-time low against the euro Monday.
But as the first quarter came to a close and contracts for heating oil were set to expire, traders unwound some of those trades. Market observers said the sales may have been to settle open future positions and lock in profits, or simply because of a lack of headlines that would entice fresh buying, according to the Associated Press.
