U.S. crude oil price tumbled Thursday morning, breaking the important supporting level of 90 dollars a barrel for the first time in four weeks as concerns about European debt crisis weighed on the market, hurting future demand and the dollar soared against a basket of currencies.
Light, sweet crude for September delivery plunged 2.01 dollars, or 2.21 percent to 89.90 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
The investors focused on what was happening in Europe. The widening bond spreads for Italy and Spain made markets nervous. The European Central Bank said Thursday it was buying government bonds in response to the deepening sovereign debt crisis, triggering fears to spread across the markets. European shares slipped sharply. Significant increase of risk aversion pushed safe haven gold to surge and forced oil to go through large scale of sell-off.
In the U.S., after a series of weak economic data, the initial jobless claims released on Thursday came in also less encouraging. Gloomy economic perspectives pictured a loom future for oil demand, worsening the declining.
The pricing dollar soared on Thursday after Japan's central bank injected 1 trillion yens into market to intervene the exchange rate, following the step of Swiss slashing interest rate unexpectedly. The dollar surged over 2 percent against the yen and jumped more than 1 percent against a basket of currencies. A rising greenback, no matter short-lived or not, hurt the dollar- dominated commodities.
Light, sweet crude for September delivery plunged 2.01 dollars, or 2.21 percent to 89.90 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
The investors focused on what was happening in Europe. The widening bond spreads for Italy and Spain made markets nervous. The European Central Bank said Thursday it was buying government bonds in response to the deepening sovereign debt crisis, triggering fears to spread across the markets. European shares slipped sharply. Significant increase of risk aversion pushed safe haven gold to surge and forced oil to go through large scale of sell-off.
In the U.S., after a series of weak economic data, the initial jobless claims released on Thursday came in also less encouraging. Gloomy economic perspectives pictured a loom future for oil demand, worsening the declining.
The pricing dollar soared on Thursday after Japan's central bank injected 1 trillion yens into market to intervene the exchange rate, following the step of Swiss slashing interest rate unexpectedly. The dollar surged over 2 percent against the yen and jumped more than 1 percent against a basket of currencies. A rising greenback, no matter short-lived or not, hurt the dollar- dominated commodities.
