Oil tops 77 usd in London, just 2 pct short of highest ever levels |
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Published
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Thu, 12 Jul 2007 16:03
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LONDON (Thomson Financial) - Oil briefly topped 77 usd in London this afternoon, taking the price to just 2 pct off its highest ever level.Benchmark Brent crude hit another 11-month high of 77.07 usd as concerns over tight crude and product supply in the face of burgeoning demand fuelled speculative buying.Prices are within sight of last August's all-time high of 78.65 usd, which occurred during the Israel-Lebanon crisis.'With Brent challenging the prior all-time highs, speculators are now piling up futures contracts in anticipation of a new record high price,' said Louis-Vincent Gave, head of GaveKal Research.At 3.42 pm, London's benchmark Brent crude contracts for August delivery were up 1.51 usd at 76.95 usd per barrel, having eased from the intra-day 11-month high of 71.02 usd.Meanwhile, New York crude contracts for August delivery were up 99 cents at 73.55 usd per barrel.Data released by the Energy Information Administration yesterday initially pressured crude this morning as the market welcomed a higher-than-expected build in gasoline stocks.However, an unexpectedly large drop in crude stocks and concerns over refinery utilisation rates, which remain at seasonal lows, later came to the fore to push prices higher.'Despite the rise in gasoline stocks, the refinery utilisation numbers are still below ideal,' noted Michael Davies, an analyst at Sucden.Gasoline demand remains extremely strong as the US works through the peak demand summer driving season, analysts said.d.sheppard@thomson.comds1/sljCOPYRIGHTCopyright AFX News Limited 2007. All rights reserved.The copying, republication or redistribution of AFX News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of AFX News.
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Oil and utilities highlights to 15:45 BST 