Middle East

Financial News

Crude Oil Rises to Record Above $125 as Nigeria Violence Draws Speculators Crude oil rose above $126 a barrel in New York to a record as the dollar weakened against the euro and yen, prompting investors to buy commodities as a hedge against the currency's decline.

OPEC May Consider Oil Output Boost Before September, Libya's Ghanem Says OPEC, the producer of more than 40 percent of the world's oil, may meet before September to consider increasing output in an attempt to rein in record crude prices, Libya's Shokri Ghanem said.

Egypt Raises Key Interest Rate to 10% as Prices Rise Most in Three Years Egypt's central bank raised its overnight deposit and lending rates by half a percentage point after inflation accelerated to a three-year high.

Oil May Fall Next Week on Dollar's Advance, Inventory Gain, Survey Shows Crude oil may fall next week on forecasts that U.S. inventories will increase as refiners prepare for summer gasoline demand and on the return of Nigerian output.

Gold Rises, Headed for Weekly Gain, as Oil Reaches Record; Platinum Gains Gold rose for a second day in London, heading for its biggest weekly gain since February, as record crude oil prices spurred investors to seek a hedge against inflation. Platinum climbed to a seven-week high.

Yen Heads for Weekly Advance Versus Euro as Stock Losses Sap Carry Trades The yen rose against the euro, heading for its biggest weekly gain in three months, as renewed concern credit-market losses are spreading spurred investors to sell higher-yielding assets.

Persian Gulf Tanker Rates May Advance for a Third Day as Vessels Dwindle The cost of shipping Middle East crude to Asia, at a five-month high, may climb for a third day as oil companies chase a dwindling supply of vessels for cargoes that are due to be collected in June.

Oman Crude Falls Against Benchmark as Lower Refining Profit Slows Demand Oman crude oil, a Persian Gulf benchmark for Asia, fell in relation to its benchmark as demand slowed after processing profits declined.

General News

Beirut Gun Battles Kill 10 as Hezbollah Challenges Prime Minister Siniora Gun battles raged across western and southern Beirut, leaving 10 people dead, as fighters from the Shiite group Hezbollah pressed their party's challenge to Lebanon's pro-Western government.

Al-Qaeda in Iraq Leader Al-Masri Wasn't Held in Raid, U.S. Military Says The U.S. military said a man detained in northern Iraq wasn't al-Qaeda's purported leader in the country, Abu Ayyub al-Masri.

Olmert Says `Never Took a Bribe,' Will Quit as Israeli Premier If Indicted Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert denied allegations that he accepted money illegally when he was Jerusalem mayor and government minister as he faces two other pending police investigations.

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