Oil Under Pressure From Fed, Dollar, And Demand Woes

December U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures are trading sharply lower late Thursday after a tentative agreement that would avert a U.S. rail strike wiped out three days of speculative gains. Sellers were also driven by expectations for weaker global demand and continued U.S. Dollar strength ahead of next week’s potentially one-percentage point rate increase by the U.S. Federal Reserve. On Thursday, it was the news that a railroad strike had been averted that drove prices lower, but the groundwork for the sell-off had been building…