Cameron Hanover – Daily Energy Hedger – September 16, 2010

Oil prices were mixed to lower on Wednesday, with crude oil and gasoline prices lower and with heating oil prices higher. The main factor in Wednesday’s weakness was a stronger US dollar, which came primarily as the result of a Japanese central bank decision overnight (Tuesday to Wednesday morning) to buy the greenback. This caught a large number of traders and investors leaning the wrong way because it came on the heels of a Japanese ruling party election that returned the party leader to his position at the head of the party – and therefore of the government. And he had been reportedly dead set against using the central bank to buy dollars.