By John Kemp
The CFTC is looking into Monday’s oil price drop and is collaborating with Britain’s Financial Services Authority FSA which regulates the London-based Brent market. CME Group, which operates one of the two principal oil markets, has described the drop as a “coordinated selloff” not caused by any technical failures. Intercontinental Exchange ICE, which runs the main Brent contract, has declined to comment on whether it saw any unusually big orders placed during the period. It did, however, say: “Following rumors regarding the Strategic Petroleum Reserve SPR, volume was widely distributed and oil prices declined over a period of time. Circuit breakers were not triggered and markets were orderly.”