Dollar Hits 7-Month Low, Stocks, Oil Retreat as Caution Reigns
Escalating tensions in the Middle East, the impending testimony of the former FBI director, British elections and a European Central Bank meeting this week, all took their toll on Asian stocks, oil and the dollar on Tuesday, reported Reuters.
Oil fell back following a brief recovery after Saudi Arabia and several other Arab states severed ties with Qatar, accusing it of supporting extremism and undermining regional stability.
"A potential risk to monitor might be that Qatar will view this as being provided with less encouragement to comply with the agreed production quota," said Jameel Ahmad of futures brokerage FXTM. Stocks in Qatar plunged more than 8% overnight to their lowest since January 2016. U.S. crude CLc1 was 0.6 percent lower at $47.12 a barrel on Tuesday, after falling 0.55% on Monday.
Global benchmark Brent LCOc1 retreated 0.6 percent to $49.17, extending Monday's 1 percent slide. The dollar index touched a seven-month low ahead of testimony before Congress from former FBI director James Comey on Thursday.