Bloomberg – Iran’s pledge to halt oil sales to France and Britain combined with faster U.S. economic growth and Greece’s bailout sent bullish bets on crude futures to the highest levels in about 10 months and prices above $109 a barrel for the first time in almost a year.
Hedge funds and other large speculators raised wagers on rising prices 11 percent in the week ended Feb. 21, according to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s Commitments of Traders report. Bets increased 26 percent over two weeks, the biggest gain since March, as West Texas Intermediate crude futures touched $109.95 in New York trading on Feb. 24.
