Oil rises to $75 a barrel over mounting tensions with Iran
Singapore: Oil has again risen to almost $75 a barrel as mounting tension over Iran's nuclear plan added to worries of global supply disruptions amid forecast of falling fuel stocks in the United States. US. light, sweet crude rose by 34 cents at $74.95 a barrel a jump for the fourth successive day. It rose by 91 cents a barrel on Tuesday. Prices were within striking distance of their all-time peak of $75.35 a barrel on April 24.

Prices have risen by nearly $5 over the past four days amid a fresh surge of fund investment that has also lifted gold to a 25-year high on a weak dollar, and platinum to a record.

Iran on Tuesday issued a threat to attack Israel in response to any "evil" act by the U.S. It also said it had succeeded in purifying uranium to 4.8 percent, at the top end of the 3 to 5 percent range used in nuclear power plants.

Iran has used a test cascade of 164 centrifuges to enrich uranium so far and is building two similar cascades and says it will start installing 3,000 centrifuges later this year to yield enough material for one bomb within a year.

The U.S. and Israel have vowed to stem Iranian nuclear enrichment and Washington has not ruled out military action if diplomacy fails.
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Australian Banks raise interest rates
Sydney: The Australian central bank has raised its official interest rate by one quarter of a percentage point to 5.75 per cent in the first rate shift in 14 months.

The rate rise became imminent when government figures revealed that inflation rate had reached 3 per cent — the top of a 2 per cent to 3 per cent band in which the bank aims to keep inflation.

In a statement, Reserve Bank governor Ian Macfarlane said there were a string of signs of inflationary pressures that had to be acted upon. He said, "Domestic spending has been growing at a solid pace recently and prevailing conditions suggest that this is likely to continue," he said.
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