Prices drop after hitting record last week as recession talks crop up surrounding US and Japan
Crude prices ended higher in just one of the days of the week which ended on Friday, 11 January, 200. All other days, prices slipped. Crude-oil future prices for sweet light crude for February delivery touched the $100/barrel mark for the first ever time last week dropped this week on demand concerns. Prices also dropped as EIA reported increase in fuel stockpiles.
Traders speculated that recession might hit US and Japan, which together account for about one-third of world's total oil consumption. The U.S., China and Japan, the three biggest oil consumers, are responsible for almost 40% of global demand.
For the week ending Friday, 11 January, 2008 crude-oil futures for light sweet crude for February delivery closed at $92.69/barrel (lower by $5.22/barrel or 5.3%) on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices are almost 79% higher than the year before.
Crude had ended FY 2007 substantially higher by $35 or 57%. It was crude's biggest yearly gain in five years.
As per the weekly inventory report by the Energy Department, U.S. crude inventories dropped by 6.8 million barrels to 282.8 million barrels for the week ending 4 January, 2008, the lowest in more than three years.
The report also said that gasoline supplies rose by 5.3 million barrels in the latest week, and distillate supplies, which include heating oil and diesel, grew by 1.5 million barrels. U.S. crude oil imports averaged 9.8 million barrels per day last week, down 203,000 barrels per day from the previous week. U.S. refineries operated at 91.3% of their capacity, the highest in more than four weeks.
EIA expects crude oil prices to average $94 per barrel in January. The Western Texas Intermediate crude oil, the underlying crude for Nymex crude-oil futures, is expected to average about $87 per barrel in 2008 and $82 in 2009. WTI prices averaged $72 per barrel in 2007.
Crude prices ended higher in just one of the days of the week which ended on Friday, 11 January, 200. All other days, prices slipped. Crude-oil future prices for sweet light crude for February delivery touched the $100/barrel mark for the first ever time last week dropped this week on demand concerns. Prices also dropped as EIA reported increase in fuel stockpiles.
Traders speculated that recession might hit US and Japan, which together account for about one-third of world's total oil consumption. The U.S., China and Japan, the three biggest oil consumers, are responsible for almost 40% of global demand.
For the week ending Friday, 11 January, 2008 crude-oil futures for light sweet crude for February delivery closed at $92.69/barrel (lower by $5.22/barrel or 5.3%) on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices are almost 79% higher than the year before.
Crude had ended FY 2007 substantially higher by $35 or 57%. It was crude's biggest yearly gain in five years.
As per the weekly inventory report by the Energy Department, U.S. crude inventories dropped by 6.8 million barrels to 282.8 million barrels for the week ending 4 January, 2008, the lowest in more than three years.
The report also said that gasoline supplies rose by 5.3 million barrels in the latest week, and distillate supplies, which include heating oil and diesel, grew by 1.5 million barrels. U.S. crude oil imports averaged 9.8 million barrels per day last week, down 203,000 barrels per day from the previous week. U.S. refineries operated at 91.3% of their capacity, the highest in more than four weeks.
EIA expects crude oil prices to average $94 per barrel in January. The Western Texas Intermediate crude oil, the underlying crude for Nymex crude-oil futures, is expected to average about $87 per barrel in 2008 and $82 in 2009. WTI prices averaged $72 per barrel in 2007.
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