Oil futures dropped by nearly $1 per barrel Monday despite pipeline sabotage in Iraq that has delayed exports from a southern port — reinforcing the view among traders that prices had risen too fast earlier this summer. “It just goes to show you that when the psychology turns, it turns,” said Tom Bentz, a trader at BNP Paribas Futures in New York. There were also signs Monday that a peace deal reached in Najaf, Iraq, last week could spread to other parts of the country, raising hopes that saboteurs might stop attacking oil pipelines. An aide to Muqtada al-Sadr said the rebel Shiite cleric called for his followers across Iraq to end fighting against U.S. and Iraqi forces and that he is planning to join the political process in the coming days. Light sweet crude for October delivery plunged 90 cents to $42.28 on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Crude futures are at their lowest level since July 27 and roughly 14 percent below the record settlement high of $48.70 on Aug. 19. When adjusted for inflation, oil prices are about half the price reached in 1981 after the Iranian revolution. Full Story
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