Price of oil vaults over $52 a barrel
US light crude climbed $1.73, or about 3% to $52.10 a barrel, down from an all-time record $58.28 struck on April 4, but about $8 up from prices at the end of 2004.
London’s Brent crude climbed $2.06 to $52.84 a barrel.
The jolt higher on the back of a rally in petrol ended a two-week slide which had been triggered by rising crude inventories in the United States, additional supply from the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries and signs that strong demand growth, especially in China, is easing.
A jump in already high US petrol prices drove the gains, with May petrol on the New York Mercantile Exchange up 7.06 cents at $1.5650 a gallon.
Refinery problems in Kansas, Louisiana, and Texas provided the fuel for the rise.
“It looks like troubles at refineries are the main forces at work behind the surge in petrol and this has a knock-on effect and pushing up the market,” said Phil Flynn, who is an analyst at Alaron Trading in Chicago.
Analysts are predicting that US crude inventories will increase for the 10th week in a row when the government Energy Information Administration releases fresh data today.
US crude stocks are at the highest level since June, 2002, and a preliminary Reuters survey of nine analysts forecasts inventories increasing by another 1.8 million barrels in the week to April 15.
The head of OPEC said on Monday the producers’ cartel would pump near 25-year highs next month although it would postpone any formal increase in output limits until a June meeting.
President Sheikh Ahmad al-Fahd al-Sabah, also Kuwait’s energy minister, said OPEC output would add 500,000 barrels per day to output in May to prepare for a surge in demand later in the year ahead of the northern hemisphere winter.
Top exporter Saudi Arabia has already told customers to expect more oil in May.
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