Crude Oil Rises to Near One-Year High as Refiners in U.S. Boost Operations

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil rose close to a one-year
high on expectations U.S. refiners will step up their
operations, increasing demand for crude.

U.S. Energy Department will probably say tomorrow that
refiners increased operating rates 0.4 percentage point last
week, the sixth weekly gain, according to a Bloomberg News
survey. Crude oil stockpiles probably fell 1.3 million barrels
in the period.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Indonesia's July Crude Oil Production Falls 0.4 Percent From Month Earlier

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil output in Indonesia,
Southeast Asia's biggest oil producer, fell 0.4 percent in July
from June, regulator BPMigas said.

Crude production declined to an average of 825,614 barrels a
day from 828,941 barrels a day a month earlier, BPMigas said
today. Output of condensate, a type of light oil produced in
association with natural gas, climbed 2.3 percent to 118,072
barrels a day in July.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Oil Is Little Changed, Close to One-Year High, as Demand Outpaces Supplies

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil fell from the highest in
almost a year amid speculation U.S. fuel stockpiles increased
last week.

Crude oil for September delivery slipped 38 cents, or 0.5
percent, to $76.64 a barrel at 10:05 a.m. on the New York
Mercantile Exchange. Futures reached $77.33 today, the highest
intraday price for a front-month contract since Aug. 9.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Crude Oil Declines on Report That OPEC Is Concerned About High Oil Prices

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil fell after Reuters reported
the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries was concerned
about high oil prices and their impact on the world economy.

The group may pump more oil to increase supplies, though
it's unclear whether extra production will be needed this year,
OPEC President Mohamed al-Hamli said, according to Reuters. OPEC,
which produces 40 percent of the world's oil, considers $60 to
$65 a barrel a ``reasonable'' price for crude, KPC World, the
monthly bulletin of the Kuwait Petroleum Corp. reported.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Crude Oil Falls From 11-Month High as Refiners Open Plants, Boost Output

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil fell from an 11-month high
in New York on speculation that U.S. fuel stockpiles will
increase because refineries are opening units.

Exxon Mobil Corp., BP Plc and Valero Energy Corp. started
units at refineries in Texas over the past week. Prices rose 2.2
percent this week after the Energy Department reported that U.S.
fuel stockpiles declined last week as gasoline demand increased.
Total SA said it restored normal output from an oil field in
Angola after cutting production to make repairs.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Sinopec First-Half Oil Processing Rises 6.4 Percent on China's Fuel Demand

(Bloomberg) -- China Petroleum & Chemical Corp.,
Asia's largest oil refiner, processed 6.4 percent more crude in
the first half as China's economic growth boosted demand for
fuels to run power plants, cars and machinery.

Oil refining rose to 76.25 million metric tons in the first
six months, Sinopec, as Beijing-based China Petroleum is known,
said on its Web site today. Crude oil production increased 2.1
percent and natural gas output gained 11 percent.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

PetroChina First-Half Oil, Gas Output Climbs 3.7 Percent on Rising Demand

(Bloomberg) -- PetroChina Co.'s first-half
production increased 3.7 percent as the nation's largest oil and
gas producer intensified efforts to meet rising energy demand.

Crude oil and gas output rose to the equivalent of 3.05
million barrels of oil a day, the Beijing-based company said
today. Oil production gained 0.1 percent from a year earlier,
while gas jumped 16.5 percent.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Crude Oil Trades Near an 11-Month High After North Sea Production Declines

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil traded near an 11-month
high in New York after rising last week as a pipeline shutdown in
the North Sea cut oil output and pushed Brent futures higher.

New York futures jumped 2 percent on July 13, their first
gain in three days, after Chevron Corp. and ConocoPhillips said
the closure of a BP Plc gas pipeline in the North Sea will limit
their oil output. World oil demand will rise 2.5 percent next
year to average 88.2 million barrels a day, the International
Energy Agency said in a report the same day.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Oil Climbs Above $73 as U.S. Inventories Decline, North Sea Output Drops

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil rose above $73 a barrel to
a 10-month high in New York after a government report showed
that U.S. inventories dropped last week and Chevron Corp. said
it cut North Sea output.

Crude-oil stockpiles dropped 1.5 million barrels to 352.6
million barrels last week, according to the Energy Department.
In the North Sea, Chevron cut oil output at its Erskine field
because the Central Area Transmission System natural-gas
pipeline was forced to close, a company spokesman said today.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Crude Oil Climbs Above $73 on Speculation U.S. Gasoline Output to Decline

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil rose above $73 a barrel in
New York for the first time since August on speculation that
U.S. output of gasoline will slow because of unexpected refinery
shutdowns.

BP Plc closed the largest of three crude units at its
refinery in Whiting, Indiana, a person familiar with the plant
said yesterday. The refinery, the biggest in the Midwest,
supplies consumers in the Chicago area. Refineries in Texas and
Kansas shut units last week. The crude-oil market often follows
gasoline during the summer months, when motor-fuel demand peaks.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Oil Falls From 10-Month High as U.S. Refineries Increase Gasoline Outputt

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil fell from a 10-month high
on expectations that demand will decline because of the
unexpected shutdown of units at U.S. refineries.

BP Plc is shutting the largest of three crude units at its
Whiting, Indiana, refinery, a person familiar with the plant
said. Units were shut at refineries in Texas and Kansas last
week. Oil rose last week on unrest in Nigeria, Africa's biggest
producer. U.K. authorities said a three-year-old British girl
abducted July 5 in Nigeria was freed yesterday.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Oil Rises to a 10-Month High on Signs of Growing Demand, Risks to Supply

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil rose to a 10-month high on
signs U.S. economic growth may accelerate, spurring increased
fuel demand in the world's biggest energy consumer.

U.S. employers added 132,000 workers in June, wages grew and
the unemployment rate stayed near a six-year low, a Labor
Department report showed today. Oil output by the Organization of
Petroleum Exporting Countries was little changed last month,
according to a Bloomberg News survey, showing that the group was
ignoring calls by consuming countries to bolster production.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Oil Rises Above $72 on Nigerian Supply Concerns, U.S. Gasoline Shortfall

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil rose above $72 a barrel in
New York, a 10-month high, on concern that unrest in Nigeria may
curb oil shipments and unexpected shutdowns at U.S. refineries
will cut fuel production.

Nigerian gunmen kidnapped a three-year-old daughter of a
British expatriate on her way to school in the southern oil city
of Port Harcourt, a police spokesman said. Five contractors were
seized yesterday from a rig operated by Royal Dutch Shell Plc's
Nigerian venture. Futures pared gains after the Energy Department
reported that U.S. oil and fuel supplies rose last week.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Asia stocks firm, Nikkei stars as yen softens

(Reuters) - Crude oil futures were a touch firmer in early Asian trade after U.S. oil topped $70 a barrel for the first time in nearly 10 months the previous session, while gold was steady above $647 an ounce, helped in part by firmer oil prices.




South Korean stocks edged higher, but Australian shares drifted on profit-taking in big banks, offsetting gains in resource firms. Hong Kong's Hang Seng was off 0.2 percent.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

Oil Little Changed, Near Nine-Month High, as U.S. Gasoline Supply Plunges

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil traded little changed in New
York, near a nine-month high, on concern the U.S. won't have enough
gasoline to meet the summer's peak demand.

A report yesterday showed gasoline stockpiles fell 749,000
barrels last week after imports plunged to a 10-week low. The
decline left gasoline levels 4.4 percent below their five-year
average. Daily demand remained near the nine-month high reported
the week before.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Oil Extends Gains as Drop in U.S. Gasoline Stocks Prompts Supply Concerns

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil rose in New York, extending
yesterday's $1-a-barrel gain, on concern that U.S. gasoline
supplies during the peak demand season may not be adequate after
a government report showed an unexpected decline in inventories.

Crude oil for August delivery rose as much as 36 cents, or
0.5 percent, to $69.33 a barrel in after-hours electronic trading
on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It was at $69.26 at 11:30
a.m. in Singapore.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Crude Oil Rises on Unexpected Drop in U.S. Gasoline Inventories Last Week

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil rose after an Energy
Department report showed an unexpected decline in U.S. gasoline
inventories last week.

Gasoline stockpiles fell 749,000 barrels, the first drop in
eight weeks, the report showed. An increase of 1.04 million
barrels was expected, according to the median of responses by 16
analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News. Inventories of distillate
fuel, a category that includes heating oil and diesel, plunged
2.28 million barrels. A 550,000 barrel gain was expected.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Crude Oil Falls Amid Speculation Nigerian Strike Won't Disrupt Its Exports

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil fell as some analysts and
traders speculated a strike in Nigeria would fail to affect exports
from Africa's largest producer.

Oil workers left Nigeria's export terminals yesterday as part
of a general strike protesting an increase in domestic fuel prices
and taxes. Oil traders and analysts doubt the strike has further
disrupted supplies from Nigeria. About a third of the nation's
output was already halted by political and criminal violence.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Oil Rises, Approaching $70, as Nigerian Strike Spreads to Export Terminals

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil rose, approaching $70 a
barrel in New York, after Nigerian workers left the country's
export terminals, threatening shipments from Africa's biggest oil
producer.

Nigerian unions increased pressure on the government in the
second day of the strike, protesting increases in taxes and fuel
prices. The Petroleum & Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of
Nigeria, or Pengassan, will hold more talks with the government
today, said Lumumba Okugbawa, a spokesman for the group.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Crude Oil Falls More Than $1 on Report of Surging U.S. Gasoline Stockpiles

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil fell more than $1 a barrel
from a nine-month high after an Energy Department report showed
that U.S. oil and gasoline stockpiles increased.

Crude-oil inventories surged 6.9 million barrels to 349.3
million in the week ended June 15, the report showed. It was the
biggest one-week gain since the week ended March 19, 2004.
Gasoline supplies rose 1.79 million barrels to 203.3 million.
Prices gained the past two days on concern Nigerian shipments
would be disrupted further because of a general strike.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News