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LONDON: Oil prices breached $142 per barrel again on
Wednesday, nearing recent record highs, as traders awaited the
latest weekly snapshot on energy stockpiles in the United States.
New York’s main oil contract,
light sweet crude for August delivery, jumped $1.06 to $142.03 a
barrel in early European trade.
Brent North Sea oil for August
delivery climbed $1.34 to $142.01 a barrel.
Prices rocketed to record highs
on Monday on the back of tensions over oil producers Iran and
Nigeria, and as the dollar remained weak against other major
currencies, traders said.
London Brent oil scored an
all-time high of $143.91 and New York crude enjoyed a lifetime peak
of $143.67.
Concerns over geopolitical
tension in the Middle East, the struggling US dollar and unrest in
Nigeria continued to drive the market, dealers said.
“They are talking about the
usual stuff like the weak dollar, Iran and Nigeria,” said Clarence
Chu, a trader with Hudson Capital Group, a New York-based energy
trading house.
“I would say people are still
leaning toward the bullish side, but they are looking for new
news.”
He added that the market would
seek fresh direction from the US Department of Energy’s oil
inventories report that was due for publication later Wednesday.
The weekly US update is crucial
for the market because the United States is the world’s biggest
energy-consuming nation, followed by number-two China.
A weak US currency, meanwhile,
makes dollar-denominated raw materials like oil cheaper for buyers
using stronger currencies, and therefore tends to stimulate demand.
--AFP
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