Alex Longley

(Bloomberg) -- Traders who piled into bullish options bets on oil prices at record pace are waking up to a harsh reality: Most of those contracts are now worthless.

Traders who piled into bullish options bets on oil prices at record pace are waking up to a harsh reality: Most of those contracts are now worthless.

Oil prices plummeted as tensions in the Middle East showed signs of easing, with Israeli strikes avoiding Iran's oil infrastructure, leading traders to shift focus to weak demand and anticipated oversupply next year.

(WO) — Traders who piled into bullish options bets on oil prices at record pace are waking up to a harsh reality: Most of those contracts are now worthless.

(Bloomberg) -- Oil plunged at the start of the week after Israeli strikes against targets in Iran avoided the OPEC member’s crude facilities, raising the prospect that hostilities in the region may ease.Most Read from BloombergThere Will Soon Be No Meatpackers Left in NYC’s Historic Meatpacking DistrictInside NYC’s Playbook for Getting Federal Grant FundsThe Tartarian CandidateA Courtyard Apartment Building Designed for Southwest SprawlBooming Cambridge Exposes England’s Widening Wealth GapWest

Saudi Arabia lowered oil prices for buyers in Asia for December after members of the OPEC+ producers group said they will push back production increases by one month.

Brent crude lost 1.5% to $74.39 by 11:02 a.m. in London. Commodities broadly declined on the prospects that a stronger dollar and potential

Shares of top container shipping companies slumped as markets fretted on what a Donald Trump presidency would mean for global trade volumes.

British energy trading firm Dare International Ltd. sued two ex-traders alleging they “flagrantly” violated their employment terms to gain “more money as soon as possible” before joining the company’s main rival in Dubai.

Oil trader Petroineos has been snapping up benchmark crude in the North Sea market at the fastest pace in at least 16 years, leaving rivals surprised by the flurry of activity.