Oil prices up 2% on weaker dollar, short covering

NEW YORK: Oil prices rose about 2 percent on Tuesday and hit a one-week high, boosted by a weaker dollar, short covering and expectations that crude inventories in the United States may decline for the third consecutive week. It was the fourth straight session of gains for oil. Brent crude futures, the international benchmark for oil prices, gained $1.01 or 2.2 percent to $46.84 per barrel by 11:49 a.m. EDT (1549 GMT). U.S. crude futures were up 92 cents, or about 2 percent, at $44.30 per barrel. (Reuters)