http://topnews.net.nz/data/Crude-Oil.jpg
Crude oil went down on Monday by more than $3 as the dollar itself reached a two-month high against the euro because of all the debt uncertainties in various European countries. North Sea Brent crude caused the oil complex to be lower, trading at $3.03 less per barrel at 5:21 a.m. EDT, going as low as $109.13. United States crude was trading $2.81 below, at a cost of $97.29 per barrel.
 
On Friday, Fitch Ratings cut the debt rating in Greece by three notches, pushing the status of the country’s debt even deeper, and Standard & Poor cut Italy’s economic outlook from “stable” to “negative” on Saturday. Both of these moves helped push the dollar even higher against the euro. They may have also caused the price of oil to drop.
 
Mark Thomas, who works with Marex Financial, said, “Ratings cut for Italy and concern over Greek restructuring and the subsequent euro weakness appear to have prompted the price fall in crude this morning”.
 
For a brief moment, the euro fell below the value of $1.40, which is a value that had previously been viewed as an important support point for the currency.
 
According to Olivier Jakob of Petromatrix, the euro would continue to be the main currency of focus for international investors.