MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

US Gulf Coast storm risk pushes oil to record

The price of London Brent oil hit another all-time high Friday on US storm concerns at the end of a record-breaking week which saw New York crude soar beyond 84 dollars per barrel.

The price of Brent North Sea crude for November delivery surged as high as 79.35 dollars per barrel, beating Thursday's record on fears a storm could threaten energy facilities in the US Gulf Coast. In London later on Friday, Brent stood at 79.13 dollars per barrel, up four cents from Thursday's close. Traders are worried that stormy weather in the US Gulf of Mexico, which accounts for about one quarter of American oil output, could stretch tight global supplies ahead of peak US winter demand for heating fuel. New York's main futures contract, light sweet crude for delivery in November, eased 21 cents to 81.57 dollars per barrel on Friday. New York's October contract had rocketed Thursday to a record 84.10 dollars per barrel before its expiry, while Brent surged past its previous August 2006 peak. Prices are setting fresh records owing to the "evacuation of oil rigs and platforms in the US Gulf of Mexico," said Barclays Capital analyst Kevin Norrish. He added: "The concern is that what is currently only a tropical disturbance in the eastern gulf could develop into a tropical storm and companies have already started evacuating workers from the area. "Both Shell and BP have reported that they are evacuating and shutting in all of their gulf oil production." Sucden analyst Michael Davies noted that "crude futures remain well supported by a number of fundamental factors." "The most recent support came from news that over 360,100 barrels of daily oil output was closed in the Gulf of Mexico, as energy producers were shutting down production facilities, because of a tropical storm developing in the region," he added.