Crude oil rose for the first time in three days after White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said it was "unacceptable" for Iraq to bar scientists from talking with UN weapons inspectors.
Concern that the US will soon invade Iraq comes as a strike in Venezuela has caused that nation's exports to plummet. Iraq and Venezuela in November pumped about 7 percent of the world's oil.
Crude oil for March delivery rose US$1.03, or 3.2 percent, to US$33.28 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It was the biggest one-day gain since Jan. 9. Prices were up 1 percent this week and 69 percent from a year ago.
In London, the March Brent crude-oil futures contract rose US$0.77, or 2.6 percent, to US$30.49 a barrel on the International Petroleum Exchange.
Hussein may try to blow up Iraq's 1,500 oil wells if the US and its allies invade, a senior defense official said at the Pentagon on condition of anonymity.
"There are a variety of intelligence sources that leave us with the impression or belief that the regime has the capability and intent to cause destruction to the oil fields," the official said.
During the 1991 Gulf War, Hussein ordered the destruction of more than 700 of 1,000 oil wells in Kuwait as his army retreated. It took 18 months and about US$20 billion to repair the damage.
The strike in Venezuela, which began on Dec. 2, is giving union officials, business leaders and former oil executives the chance to pressure President Hugo Chavez to step down or hold elections. Chavez has refused both alternatives.
As of Wednesday, Venezuela's production was about 714,000 barrels a day, striking oil workers said. The government says production is above 1 million barrels a day. Output has plunged from about 3 million barrels before the strike.
Venezuela, Saudi Arabia, Canada and Mexico normally vie to be the largest supplier to the US In October the four supplied 65 percent of US oil imports, according to the Energy Department.
Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil exporter, pumps about 10 percent of global supply.
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