STOCK MARKET WATCH - Thursday, 26 January 2012

[Ghost Dog]

32. Oil gains on weak dollar after Fed vow

LONDON | Thu Jan 26, 2012 12:46pm GMT (Reuters) - Oil prices rose on Thursday, extending gains on the back of a weaker dollar after the U.S. Federal Reserve said it would keep interest rates low for longer than planned, in a bid to stimulate an economic recovery...

... Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke's comments that the U.S. central bank could consider further monetary easing weighed on the dollar, lending further support to oil.

A weaker greenback renders dollar-denominated assets such as crude cheaper for holders of other currencies. The dollar index .DXY was down 0.48 percent, after slipping to five-week lows earlier in the session.

Front-month Brent crude futures rose by $1.53 to$111.34 a barrel by 1206 GMT, reversing two days of losses, and just back from an intra-day high of $111.35 per barrel. U.S. crude was meanwhile $1.30 higher $100.70, rising for a second day.

/... http://uk.reuters.com/article/2012/01/26/businesspro-us-markets-oil-idUKTRE7AD06820120126