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Gold/Mining/Energy : Strictly: Drilling and oil-field services -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Captain James T. Kirk who wrote (47205)	7/1/1999 2:16:00 PM
From: Tomas	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 95453

Optimism returns to oil markets - Houston Chronicle, June 30 By MICHAEL DAVIS Crude oil rallied Wednesday to its highest price in 19 months, sparked by inventory numbers indicating strong demand and underpinned by a growing optimism that OPEC is sticking to its quotas. The strong showing for oil prompted some market observers to predict it will break the $20-per-barrel barrier, possibly in the coming days but certainly in the next few months. Most current forecasts have oil reaching $20 in the fourth quarter when winter heating demand kicks in. "I was looking for oil to reach $20 by the fourth quarter, but with this level of enthusiasm and speculation it could be there tomorrow," said Nizam Sharief, director of energy research at Hornsby & Co., a Houston energy consulting firm. Light, sweet crude oil for delivery in August closed Wednesday on the New York Mercantile Exchange at $19.29 per barrel, up 85 cents. It was the highest the near-month oil contract has closed since Nov. 25, 1997, when it closed at $19.73. U.S. crude oil inventories fell 1.7 million barrels between June 18 and Friday, to 330.40 million, according to figures released before trading Wednesday by the U.S. Department of Energy. Figures released late Tuesday by the American Petroleum Institute showed a smaller 488,000-barrel drop in oil stocks during the same period. The inventory report, which represents the eighth decline in oil stocks in 11 weeks, was even more surprising since analysts were expecting the numbers to show an increase. "Clearly, the API numbers were the catalyst for the rally, but the positive news about inventories doesn't go far enough to explain this," said John Saucer, oil analyst with Salomon Smith Barney in Houston. When the market broke through $19.05, the highest the spot market for oil has reached this year, it prompted even more buying, Saucer said. "The market blew past some key highs today," he said Wednesday, adding that he expects further declines in inventories that will push prices up to the $20 range in the coming weeks. ... chron.com