“The U.S. oil rig count, a key indicator for trader sentiment, exhibited a rather large weekly decline,” said analysts at consultants JBC Energy GmbH in Vienna. “At least in the short term, this dynamic should help protect the downside to crude prices. The more pressing question may be how much higher prices can climb before the gravitational forces of global supply and demand can start to form an upper limit.” West Texas Intermediate for October delivery rose as much as 44 cents, or 0.9 percent, to $50.33 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, and traded for $49.91 at 10:43 a.m. London time. On Sept. 14, it reached $50.50, the highest since May 25. Total volume traded was about 26 percent below the 100-day average. Click Read More below for additional detail.

FedEx Corp. announced that its Board of Directors has concluded a comprehensive assessment of the role of FedEx Freight as part of its portfolio and has decided to pursue a full separation of FedEx Freight through the capital markets, creating a new publicly traded company. The separation is expected to be achieved in a tax-efficient manner for FedEx stockholders and executed within the next 18 months. As two industry-leading public companies, FedEx and FedEx Freight will continue to pursue their growth strategies. The separation will allow for more customized operational execution along with more tailored investment and capital allocation strategies to serve the unique and evolving needs of both the global parcel and LTL markets. They will also maintain the strategic advantages of cooperation on key commercial, operational, and technology initiatives. Customers of both businesses will continue to enjoy the same superior service, speed, and coverage they have come to expect from FedEx.