Tuesday, May 6, 2008

Crude futures top 120 USD for first time

NEW YORK, May 5 (Xinhua) -- Crude futures topped 120 U.S. dollars a barrel for the first time Monday on supply concerns.   

"Oil prices climbed to a record once again today amid concerns as to what the impact of the most recent geopolitical events are going to have on already tight supplies," Wall Street Strategies' senior research analyst Conley Turner told Xinhua. "It is usually the same cast of characters who appears to be taking turns at driving up prices in recent months."

Nigeria, never too far from the spotlight, also made its requisite contribution to the price increase when rebels there attacked an oil facility in the southern part of that country, said Turner. Also, the fact that Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that his country was not going to not bend to international pressure and give up its nuclear program served a catalyst for higher prices, added the analyst.     

"It is not unreasonable to assume that gas prices could climb higher over the next month. One way for consumers to mitigate the impact of the continued rise in oil and gas prices is to buy good quality oil stocks," he said.  "The era of higher energy prices is definitely here," added Turner.

Click on the link to read the full article: http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-05/06/content_8111287.htm