Crude Oil Worst Monthly Performance in 17 Months

Published on Saturday, 29 May 2010 20:24 Written by Gerard Lerod

New York, May 29^th (TradersHuddle.com) - Crude oil fell on Friday, capping the worst month since December 2008, after a Fitch Ratings downgrade of Spain’s credit rating, pushed the euro lower.

The commodity was already lower on the session after a government report showed April’s personal income rose, but consumers remained wary of the economic recovering and stalled their spending pushing the savings rate higher.

The contract for July delivery fell 58 cents to settle at $73.97 a barrel. In May crude oil fell 14%, making it the worst performance in 17 months. The biggest decline since December 2008 resulted from the euro’s decline and jitters on global economic growth.

Oil rose more than 8% in the previous sessions, rebounding along with equities, halting a 20% decline since May 3.

United States Oil Fund (USO), the ETF tracking crude oil, reversed some on Friday following the crude oil decline. The ETF approach its 14day moving average @ $34.65.