SF Gate: Hedge funds raised bullish bets on oil to the most since May as speculation that Europe’s leaders will resolve the sovereign debt crisis helped drive crude to a three-month high.
The funds and other large speculators increased wagers on rising prices by 7.2 percent in the week ended Nov. 8, based on futures and options, according to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s Commitments of Traders report yesterday.
Oil climbed 5 percent in New York during the period covered by the report as Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou and Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi agreed to resign, paving the way for new governments that would implement austerity measures designed to cut debt and borrowing costs. A United Nations report on the threat to Middle East stability from Iran’s nuclear program also boosted prices
