Crude oil prices jump to US$44

16-Feb-05

Concerns of tight supplies of heating oil, ahead of the US government's next petroleum supply report and anticipated colder weather has pushed crude oil futures toward US$44 a barrel. Light sweet crude for February delivery climbed to US$43.91 on the New York Mercantile exchange. In London, Brent crude for February delivery was at US$41.04 per barrel on the International Petroleum Exchange. Saudi Arabia is reported to have cut its output by 5,00,000 bpd as part of last years's OPEC agreement. OPEC ministers plan to meet on January 30 to decide on the need for production cutbacks beyond the 1 million bpd they agreed on last month.