Oil Prices Stay Close to $60 Per Barrel
Thursday December 29, 8:03 am ET
By George Jahn, Associated Press Writer
Oil Prices Near $60 After Iran's Oil Minister Says OPEC Should Mull Production Cut
VIENNA, Austria (AP) -- Oil prices slipped but stayed close to $60 a barrel on Thursday after Iran's oil minister said OPEC should consider cutting production next month.
The release of U.S. inventory data later in the day with expectations of across-the board stock draws also helped markets.
Light sweet crude for February delivery fell 19 cents to $59.63 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange by midday in Europe.
Brent crude was trading at $57.39, down 25 cents on the ICE Futures exchange.
The price of NYMEX crude is about 16 percent below its Aug. 30 high of $70.85. Oil prices remained above $60 a barrel for months after Hurricane Katrina disrupted Gulf of Mexico oil and gas output and dipped below $60 recently amid mild winter weather in the United States.
Heating oil and gasoline were essentially steady at $1.6835 a gallon (3.8 liters) and $1.5915 a gallon respectively. Natural gas was down more than 16 cents to $11.47 per 1,000 cubic feet.
On Wednesday, January natural gas futures reversed a three-day slide of 23 percent, rising 40.9 cents to settle at $11.431. Natural gas, which briefly topped $15 earlier this month, has been under pressure lately amid forecasts calling for mild weather in much of the U.S.
The Iranian oil minister said in remarks published Wednesday by the Sharq Newspaper that the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries should consider cutting production by one million barrels a day when it next meets Jan. 31. Kazem Vaziri Hamaneh wasn't specific on whether the reduction should be made in the cartel's actual production or its output ceiling, which is currently set at 28 million barrels per day.
"It can be said that under the present conditions the supply of oil is more than its demand," he said.
Vienna's PVM Oil Associates attributed Wednesday's gains to "forecasts of stock draws across the barrel and expectations of OPEC deciding a quota cut at its end-January meeting."
Still, analysts said sustained price gains were unlikely with weather forecasters calling for higher than normal temperatures over the next week.
According to Accuweather.com, temperatures in most of the United States apart from the northwest will be higher than normal in the next six to 10 days. The U.S. northeast is the world's biggest heating oil market.
Cash is King until further notice!!!
My comments on companies are usually my opinion of long term success (years). The PPS may go up or down greatly in the meantime depending on the number of greedy suckers with money.
AI
