TODAY.AZ / Business

Oil prices rise to hover at mid-US$58 a barrel ahead of OPEC meeting

15 March 2007 [09:19] - TODAY.AZ
Oil prices gained Thursday on figures showing that supplies of U.S. gasoline and other refined products fell in the most recent week, and ahead of an OPEC meeting later in the day.

The market also got a lift from Wall Street's recovery from its plunge Tuesday that stirred concerns about the U.S. economy's health and future demand for energy.

Traders expect ministers from Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries to keep their output targets steady when they meet in Vienna, Austria, later Thursday. Some analysts have pointed out that maintaining current OPEC quotas could leave the market with a surplus in the second quarter, which could hurt prices.

Light, sweet crude for April delivery rose 25 cents to US$58.41 a barrel in Asian electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange, midmorning in Singapore. The contract on Wednesday edged up 23 cents to settle at US$58.16 a barrel.

Wednesday's weekly petroleum inventories report from the U.S. show that crude oil stocks rose less than expected from the previous week. The Energy Department said crude inventories rose last week to 325.3 million barrels, up by 1.1 million barrels. Analysts surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires expected a bigger gain of 1.4 million barrels.

Meanwhile, gasoline inventories fell by 2.5 million barrels last week, above expectations of a 2.1 million barrel decline. Inventories for distillate stocks — which include heating oil and diesel fuel — fell by 2.8 million barrels, more than estimates of a 1.9 million barrel drop.

Demand for both gasoline and distillate fuel increased last week from the same period last year.

However, inventories for crude, gasoline and distillates remain at the upper end of average for this time of year.

Heating oil futures dropped a tad to US$1.7071 a gallon (3.8 liters) while natural gas prices advanced 1.2 cents to US$7.095 per 1,000 cubic feet. The Associated Press

/The International Herald Tribune /

URL: http://www.today.az/news/business/37941.html

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