Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Gold/Mining/Energy : Gold Price Monitor -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Eashoa' M'sheekha who wrote (49833)	3/1/2000 8:19:00 AM
From: Bruce Robbins	Respond to of 116898

Oil Hits Highs Despite Supply Rise Signs Mar 1 7:42am ET LONDON (Reuters) - World oil markets stormed to new nine-year highs Wednesday despite news that producer powers Saudi Arabia, Venezuela and Mexico are set to propose that cartel OPEC releases more output. U.S. NYMEX crude oil for April delivery pushed to a new nine-year peak of $30.93 a barrel in out-of-hours electronic trade after overnight figures showing that threadbare U.S. supplies of gasoline dwindled still further. Benchmark Brent pushed up to within three cents of its own $28.78-a-barrel post-Gulf War high before easing back to $28.25 a barrel by 1200 GMT, still up 16 cents. Prices held near highs even though OPEC delegates said that Saudi Arabia, Venezuela and Mexico, meeting in London on Thursday, are set to propose that cartel OPEC raise oil output by 1.2 million barrels per day (bpd) from April 1. The three countries -- at the vanguard of a producer restraint deal which has trebled prices in a year -- would put the finishing touches to an accord which would also see non-OPEC Mexico agree to raise supply by 90,000 bpd, the delegates said. The aim of the producers would be to ease benchmark U.S. light crude back below $25 a barrel. Yet news of the proposed supply rise -- in line with current expectations -- failed to take much steam out of sizzling prices. Producers have signaled that fear of a sudden price slide when demand enters its seasonal second quarter decline will persuade them to err on the side of caution on the size of any output increase. The trio may also recommend that OPEC quickly add another 500,000 bpd of supply if the oil markets prove resilient after the impact of the initial 1.2 million bpd rise, the OPEC delegates said. ``The market has had a suspicion that there would be a reaction from OPEC, which has become a very topical subject in the United States,' said broker Peter Gignoux of Salomon Smith Barney. U.S. GASOLINE STOCK DRAW DEEPENS SUPPLY FEARS Overnight news that the American Petroleum Institute (API) had reported that gasoline inventories had fallen by another 596,000 barrels deepened fears of supply shortages come the peak winter demand season ``We've got a situation where we can't afford any draw in gasoline. A draw in gasoline this time of year is unusual ahead of the summer driving season,' said Bill O'Grady, analyst at A.G. Edwards in St Louis. Soaring futures prices have hit consumers hard at the pump. The U.S retail price for unleaded gasoline this week hit the highest level since the Gulf War in 1990 at $1.42 a gallon. Prices are up 11.5 cents in February alone, and 51 cents a gallon from the same time a year ago, as producer supply curbs cut ever deeper into consumers' supply cushion. OPEC's final decision on oil output beyond March is not likely until its March 27 conference in Vienna. OPEC price hawks Iran and Algeria say they want to postpone any higher output at least until the end of the second quarter. Prices in dollars per barrel: Mar 1 Feb 29 (1230 GMT) (close) IPE April Brent 28.26 28.09 NYMEX April light crude 30.50 30.43