Oil extends retreat from seven-week high

Oil extended its retreat from a seven-week high and Asian energy shares declined, while the dollar weakened versus major peers as traders weighed prospects for a US interest-rate hike this year.

Crude sank below $47 a barrel in New York, dragged down by possible increases in supplies from Iraq and Nigeria, and the MSCI Asia Pacific Energy Index of shares fell for a fourth day.

Emerging markets

The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index snapped its biggest two-day advance in a month as South Korea’s won led gains in emerging markets.

New Zealand’s currency strengthened after its central bank said the pace of interest-rate cuts in the nation would be gradual.

US treasury bond volatility was near a 20-month low.

Financial markets have been dominated over the past week by speculation about the timing of the Federal Reserve's next increase in borrowing costs and an air of caution is evident before chair Janet Yellen speaks on Friday at an annual symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

Regional Fed presidents including William Dudley and John Williams indicated last week that a rate hike could come as soon as next month, while futures prices indicate a 51 per cent chance of such a move this year. – (Bloomberg)