 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
Oil Back Near Highs After Brief Respite LONDON (Reuters) - Oil prices rose back toward record highs on Monday as fears persisted over tight international supply, despite easing concerns over the immediate threat to exports from Russian oil giant YUKOS. U.S. light crude rose 37 cents to $44.32 a barrel, less than 50 cents shy of Friday's record of $44.77, the highest price since the New York Mercantile Exchange launched oil futures in 1983. Prices have rallied more than 30 percent this year as rapid demand growth, especially in the United States and China, has left little leeway for any supply disruptions. Consumption is accelerating at its fastest pace in more than 20 years. Prices rose even though an official at Russia's state railways said it expected no disruptions in YUKOS' oil and refined oil products exports after August 10, when the firm's deadline to pay shipping fees expires. YUKOS (YUKO.RTS: Quote, Profile, Research) continues to battle bankruptcy due to a multi-billion-dollar tax debt case, which threatens to bring its day-to-day operations to a halt, including oil exports. YUKOS, Russia's biggest oil-exporting firm, pumps 1.7 million bpd of crude, or two percent of global supply. "No supplies will be stopped after August 10. We will continue to work as we have been working in the past because it is in the state's interest," Marina Kovshova, head of Russian state railways' marketing department, told Reuters. YUKOS shares shot up on Monday after a late Friday court ruling against bailiffs' seizure of its main oil unit, deemed the firm's biggest victory yet in its fight for survival. The seizure of Yuganskneftegaz, which accounts for more than 60 percent of YUKOS' total output, and the planned sale of the unit were potentially the most crippling moves threatened by bailiffs charged with collecting $3.4 billion in taxes from the company. Friday's weak U.S. jobs data also weighed on oil prices as a downturn in the world's biggest economy would undermine petroleum demand growth. The Labor Department said U.S. employers added just 32,000 workers to payrolls last month, far below Wall Street expectations of a 228,000 job gain. High oil prices, spotty consumer demand and fears of terrorism prevented firms from hiring new workers, analysts said. The United States is the biggest oil consumer in the world and was expected to increase demand by more than 2 percent, or 530,000 barrels per day (bpd), this year to 25.11 million bpd, according to the International Energy Agency. Traders are also wary of security concerns in the Middle East, especially top oil exporter Saudi Arabia and Iraq, which is battling to rebuild its oil industry after the 2003 war. An Iraqi oil source said on Monday that oil exports from the southern Basra terminal were running at two million bpd, a level not seen since before a string of sabotage attacks on key pipelines in May and June. A two-month strike by opponents of leftist Chavez late in 2002 temporarily halted the OPEC producer's overseas sales and caused oil prices to spike. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, which controls around half of the world's crude exports, is pumping at the highest levels since 1979 as it tries to stem oil's relentless price rise. OPEC output is running at 30 million barrels daily and president Purnomo Yusgiantoro said last week that the group was ready to lift production by 1 to 1.5 million bpd if deemed necessary when ministers next meet. The group is scheduled to meet in Vienna on Sept. 15 to review output policy, but only Saudi Arabia has any significant spare capacity to increase supply.
|
