Crude Oil Futures Rise Above $64 a Barrel
Oil prices rose above $64 a barrel on Friday, finishing 2 percent higher for the week amid concerns about tightening U.S. supplies and as traders looked ahead to the upcoming summer-driving and hurricane seasons.
Light sweet crude for May delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange rose 35 cents to settle at $64.26 a barrel. The contract gained $2.14 a barrel on Thursday.
Brent crude for May delivery rose 29 cents to $63.56 a barrel on London's ICE Futures exchange.
Nymex gasoline futures rose 0.7 cent to close at $1.8232 a gallon while heating oil prices settled at $1.7924, up less than a penny.
Natural gas futures fell 3.8 cents to settle at $7.29 per 1,000 cubic feet.
Oil analyst Tim Evans of IFR Energy Services in New York said "the markets are higher for now on short-term technical factors, but may not be able to sustain the advance without additional bullish fundamental news."
The U.S. Energy Department said Wednesday that domestic inventories of crude oil declined by 1.3 million barrels last week to 338.6 million barrels, or 9 percent above year-ago levels.
In spite of this historically high level of crude inventories, market participants are getting nervous because of the geopolitical tensions in Iraq, Iran and Nigeria, and they are looking ahead to possible output disruptions from this year's hurricane season, which starts June 1 and continues through November.
AccuWeather.com experts predicted earlier this week that the 2006 hurricane season likely would be busy, but probably not as busy as last year, when 26 named storms and 14 hurricanes swept the U.S., ravaging refineries, oil rigs and pipelines along the Gulf Coast.
Prices were also supported by supply disruptions in Nigeria. Rome-based Eni SPA's Nigerian unit said it would not fully repair a 75,000-barrel-per-day pipeline until the end of the month.
Analysts at Barclays Capital have said the political turmoil in the Niger Delta, along with the national elections in 2007 "have the potential to pose a substantial threat to crude oil supplies for a long time to come."
Traders remained concerned about the potential threat of United Nations Security Council action against Iran, the No. 2 oil producer within OPEC, over its nuclear ambitions.
The United States accuses Iran of seeking to develop nuclear weapons, a charge denied by Tehran, which says its program aims only to generate electricity.
The five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council have been debating since last week what action the council should take after the U.N. nuclear watchdog referred Iran to the body.
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries has its next meeting scheduled for June 1 in Venezuela. The South American country, the world's fifth largest oil exporter favors constraining output to keep prices high.
Venezuelan Oil Minister Rafael Ramirez argued in favor of a production cut at the group's meeting March 8 in Vienna, Austria.
AP
Light sweet crude for May delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange rose 35 cents to settle at $64.26 a barrel. The contract gained $2.14 a barrel on Thursday.
Brent crude for May delivery rose 29 cents to $63.56 a barrel on London's ICE Futures exchange.
Nymex gasoline futures rose 0.7 cent to close at $1.8232 a gallon while heating oil prices settled at $1.7924, up less than a penny.
Natural gas futures fell 3.8 cents to settle at $7.29 per 1,000 cubic feet.
Oil analyst Tim Evans of IFR Energy Services in New York said "the markets are higher for now on short-term technical factors, but may not be able to sustain the advance without additional bullish fundamental news."
The U.S. Energy Department said Wednesday that domestic inventories of crude oil declined by 1.3 million barrels last week to 338.6 million barrels, or 9 percent above year-ago levels.
In spite of this historically high level of crude inventories, market participants are getting nervous because of the geopolitical tensions in Iraq, Iran and Nigeria, and they are looking ahead to possible output disruptions from this year's hurricane season, which starts June 1 and continues through November.
AccuWeather.com experts predicted earlier this week that the 2006 hurricane season likely would be busy, but probably not as busy as last year, when 26 named storms and 14 hurricanes swept the U.S., ravaging refineries, oil rigs and pipelines along the Gulf Coast.
Prices were also supported by supply disruptions in Nigeria. Rome-based Eni SPA's Nigerian unit said it would not fully repair a 75,000-barrel-per-day pipeline until the end of the month.
Analysts at Barclays Capital have said the political turmoil in the Niger Delta, along with the national elections in 2007 "have the potential to pose a substantial threat to crude oil supplies for a long time to come."
Traders remained concerned about the potential threat of United Nations Security Council action against Iran, the No. 2 oil producer within OPEC, over its nuclear ambitions.
The United States accuses Iran of seeking to develop nuclear weapons, a charge denied by Tehran, which says its program aims only to generate electricity.
The five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council have been debating since last week what action the council should take after the U.N. nuclear watchdog referred Iran to the body.
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries has its next meeting scheduled for June 1 in Venezuela. The South American country, the world's fifth largest oil exporter favors constraining output to keep prices high.
Venezuelan Oil Minister Rafael Ramirez argued in favor of a production cut at the group's meeting March 8 in Vienna, Austria.
AP
posted by Ottawa Gas Prices | 8:17 PM
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