Crude oil is quietly climbing higher. It was $85 mid-December and is now almost $97.
Jeddah seaport, Saudi Arabia
Although we care about BRENT (BNO, quote), which is the “world’s blend”, it’s really all about the Middle East.
Tensions continue to escalate with speculation about Syrian regime leader Bashar al-Assad’s chemical weapons slipping into terrorist hands.
Note the move in Russia. The Market Vectors Russia Index ETF (RSX, quote) has broken through key resistance that was the top in September.