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| Opec says it is already pumping flat out
(AP) |
World oil prices broke fresh records on Monday, with US light crude
poised to break through the $50 a barrel mark, and Brent crude topping $46
in London.
US light crude closed at a record price of $49.64 and in post-market
electronic trading, struck $50 a barrel.
Brent crude hit a high of $46.28 before closing 57 cents up at $45.90
as instability in Nigeria's main oil producing region stoked supply
worries.
Analysts said US prices would soon top $50 a barrel for the first time.
'Major problem'
Oil traders said fears that political unrest in Nigeria's oil producing
region would cut output had added to pressure on prices.
Shell and Agip have both evacuated non-essential workers from the south
Nigerian Delta in recent days where the government is fighting insurgents.
"The problems of Nigeria have obviously got worse," said Robert
Laughlin, a trader at GNI-Man Financial.
"This is a major problem that we don't need because they produce sweet crude oil . There is not
enough sweet crude oil."
Traders also cited recent clashes between Saudi Arabian police and
suspected Islamic militants in the Saudi capital Riyadh for forcing prices
up.
John Kilduff, senior vice president for energy at Fimat USA, said he
believed prices would rise to at least $51 a barrel in the next few days.
"The hits just keep coming," he said. "The damage to production in the
Gulf of Mexico will haunt the market for some time."
Adequate supply
The president of Opec said earlier that the producers' cartel would not review output
quotas before December.
Opec president Purnomo Yusgiantoro questioned the significance of the
latest price surge in Asia, saying "this is not the price of the Opec
basket, it is the price of US crude".
"This is because of Hurricane Ivan and some problems in other places,"
said the Opec chief, who is also Indonesia's oil minister.
"We will wait until we meet in Cairo," he added, referring to Opec's
next ministerial meeting in December.
"This is not a supply and demand problem. Opec supply is enough."
Hurricane Ivan temporarily crippled offshore oil production and coastal
refinery operations in the Gulf of Mexico, reducing the region's daily
output.
Since then, the Caribbean and southern US have suffered another major
storm, Hurricane Jeanne.
(Agencies) | 
Updated: 2004-09-28 10:36