$67 CRUDE
BBC NEWS: Oil tops $67 as US demand soars
The US thirst for gasoline has reached $67 a barrel on August 12, 2005. In late trading US light crude rose by more than $1 a barrel, while London Brent crude was up $1.08 at $66.46. Worldwide petrol and gasoline prices are at unprecedented levels. US refinery stoppages have come just as car sales and demand hit highs, and amid persistant security fears.
The latest surge has been partly triggered by more than a dozen breakdowns at US installations, the latest of which hit a ConocoPhillips refinery in Illinois. And fearsTropical Storm Irene, which could intensify to hurricane strength, is heading for the US Gulf Coast have added to worries about supply interruptions.
With US economic growth strong and the latest data showing car sales at their highest level since the consumer slump following 11 September 2001, the stage is set for further upward pressure on oil, analysts said.
In real terms, stripping out inflation, oil is well below the $80 a barrel on average for the year after the 1979 oil crisis. But the average price this year more than $53 per barrel is higher in real terms than the level during the l973-4 first oil crisis.
Be ready for the next round of fuel price increase ......
No comments:
Post a Comment