Brent nudges $97/bbl on Venezuela, Nigeria issues

19 February 2008 11:11  [Source: ICIS news]

LONDON (ICIS news)--Crude prices rose by more than $1/bbl on Tuesday to take Brent crude on ICE Futures above $96/bbl on the back of the US dispute with Venezuela and supply disruptions in Nigeria.

By 10:20 GMT, April Brent crude had hit a high of $96.79/bbl, a gain of $1.88/bbl over the Monday close of $94.91/bbl, before easing back to around $96.50/bbl.

At the same time, March NYMEX crude was trading around $97.50/bbl, having hit a high of $97.87/bbl, a gain of $2.37/bbl compared with Friday’s close. NYMEX futures did not settle on Monday due to President's day.

Crude prices have been going up mainly due the ongoing dispute between Venezuela and the US during which the OPEC member threatened to cut exports to the US.

Worries over reduced Nigerian supplies also added to this upward pressure after a pipeline leak earlier in the month led to the loss of 130,000 bbl/day of output and a force majeure declaration on exports from the Bonny terminal.

ICIS Copyright © Reed Business Information 2009

Author: Giovanni Coiro
+44 20 8652 3214

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