Oil Prices Fall As Ida Fades, Dollar Climbs

MARK WILLIAMS

Oil prices fell Tuesday as workers headed back to deep sea platforms that were bypassed by a rapidly weakening storm in the Gulf of Mexico.

Ida, once a Category 1 hurricane, was downgraded to a tropical storm Monday and then lost even that status Tuesday as its winds lost their punch.

Producers like Royal Dutch Shell and Anadarko reported no damage to facilities and said flights bringing workers back to abandoned platforms and rigs would begin Tuesday.

Benchmark crude for December delivery fell 38 cents to settle at $79.05 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Even on Monday, when Tropical Storm Ida posed a potential threat to Gulf platforms, it appeared that the affects of a weakened dollar played a more significant role as oil prices rose $2 to $79.43.

The dollar tumbled so far to start the week, a person holding a euro could trade it in for $1.50, the first time the U.S. currency has been that weak since July. Because crude is traded in dollars, that means an investor could trade in euros for dollars and buy oil for a relative bargain.