Crude-oil futures declined on Thursday, 30 October 2014 marking its first down move after two straight sessions of gains.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light, sweet crude futures for delivery in December fell $1.08, or 1.3%, to settle at $81.12 a barrel.
The FOMC statement on Wednesday was deemed surprisingly hawkish on U.S. monetary policy. The Fed ended its monthly bond-buying program (quantitative easing), which was expected. However, the FOMC statement emphasized the improving U.S. economy, which led many to believe U.S. interest rates will be raised in 2015. The majority of traders and investors were looking for a dovish lean from the FOMC statement.
Relatively robust economic data pressured the precious metal further and pushed up stock prices. The U.S. economy grew 3.5% in the third quarter, bolstered by a surge in exports and federal spending. The report further undermined the safe-have gold market.
The U.S. dollar index has posted a solid rally in the wake of the FOMC meeting and hit a three-week high on Thursday. The greenback is hovering near a four-year high. Meantime, Euro currency prices slumped on the FOMC statement.
In overnight news, the Euro zone got another downbeat economic report on Thursday. EU consumer confidence came in at a reading of minus 11.1 in October from minus 11.4 in September. The report met market expectations but is another reminder of the ill economic health of the European Union, which is the world's third-largest economy.
Global oil prices had settled higher for the second consecutive day on Wednesday, after weekly U.S. oil stockpiles didn't rise as much as they were expected to, and petroleum product stockpiles shrunk, indicating stronger demand.
Among other energy products, Nymex gasoline for November lost $2.49 cents, or 1.1%, to settle at $2.1958 a gallon, while November heating oil fell $2.22 cents, or 0.9%, to finish at $3.5128 a gallon on Nymex.
December natural-gas futures rose $3.90 cents, or 1%, to $3.8270 per million British thermal units. Earlier Thursday, the Energy Information Administration reported natural gas supplies rose by 87 billion cubic feet in the week ended 24 October, slightly more than traders had expected.