After spiking past US$68 a barrel earlier in the day, crude oil prices slipped, as th eworld waits to see the effects of a weakened Hurricane. Oil rose by over one dollar in early trading as Rita approached Texas, raising fears it could cripple major production facilities and drive up energy costs this winter. Light sweet crude for November delivery settled at US$66.50 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude oil futures for November fell to US$64.60 a barrel on London's International Petroleum Exchange.
Nymex crude oil prices are more than 40% higher than a year ago, though still below the intraday record of US$70.85 on Aug. 30 when Katrina struck Louisiana, damaging numerous refineries and platforms and shutting down about 90% of Gulf Coast production. If Rita causes a significant amount of damage, crude oil could climb as high as US$73 per barrel, and gasoline could top US$5 per gallon.
23-Sep-05 
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