Oil Industry Headlines: Week of November 16
Light, sweet crude for January delivery hit a record high of $99.29 in early trading on Wednesday, surpassing Nov. 7th’s record of $98.62. Although crude oil and gasoline inventories rose in the U.S., global demand growth continues to outpace supply growth, creating upward pressure on prices. “Currently, oil producers are turning out about 85 million barrels a day, while the U.S. Department of Energy says consumption is between 85 million and 86 million barrels a day,” reported the Associated Press. To ease market tension, leaders from around the world have been calling on OPEC to increase production output. However, after meeting over the weekend, OPEC did not announce another production increase. “The apparent removal of the possibility of increased supply will serve to at least underpin crude oil at these (price) levels,” Bank of Ireland analyst Paul Harris told Yahoo News on Tuesday. Record oil prices are causing unique problems in China, where the government imposes controls on fuel pricing. “The yawning gap between global oil markets, now racing toward $100 a barrel, and capped domestic pump rates has forced Chinese refiners to cut processing to stem losses, sparking a widespread shortage of diesel since early October,” reported Reuters. The government responded by raising fuel price caps almost 10%. Supplies have not yet increased dramatically.Published Thursday, November 22nd, 2007 at 4:35 pm and filed under Industry News.