There's been concern about how much higher oil prices will be felt by consumers, but people are now more optimistic that the year end will play out just fine,

In general, oil has been around $60 or below, and I think the market definitely takes heart from that fact, when it doesn't seem to climb past $60.

Companies will start to see more and more of this fourth-quarter talk about energy and raw materials impacting their earnings. Earnings and the economy may slow down in the third and fourth quarters.

The attacks are a concern given Nigeria's importance as an oil-producing nation. It's a factor that will keep prices supported.

The only real economic concern I have is that oil prices will erase improvements in employment and real income for a portion of our customer base...an important portion of our customer base,

Rising oil prices raise concern U.S. consumption will slow, leading to worries that exports from some Asian countries will shrink, and worsening the region's growth outlook. The higher fuel costs may also lead to concern corporate profits will be squeezed. These encourage foreign investors to sell the regional equities.