Associated Press
Oil prices surged past $125 per barrel early today on the eve of the U.S. driving season as a weakening dollar drove investors to snap up commodities.
The Wall Street Journal published a report today that suggested closer ties between Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and rebels attempting to overthrow Colombia’s government, heightening chances that the U.S. could impose sanctions on one of its biggest oil suppliers as a state sponsor of terror.
Chavez has been linked to Colombian rebels previously, but the paper reported it had reviewed computer files indicating concrete offers by Venezuela’s leader to arm guerillas.
Comments Thursday from European Central Bank president Jean-Claude Trichet signaling that the bank was unlikely to consider interest rate cuts helped strengthen the euro against the U.S. currency.
