Oil prices surged past US$67 a barrel in Asian trading yesterday after al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden threatened new attacks against the US, dealers said.
Bin Laden's latest threat, which was made in an audiotape broadcast over al-Jazeera television, further fuelled market tensions triggered by potential supply disruptions in major oil producers Iran and Nigeria, they said.
At 7:15am GMT, New York's main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in February, was up US$0.27 at US$67.10 a barrel, the highest in four months, from its close of US$66.83 in the US on Thursday.
"The bin Laden tape has caused a knee-jerk reaction on the part of the market," said Victor Shum, a Singapore-based analyst with the US energy consultancy Purvin and Gertz.
He said speculation by oil traders could push prices to US$70 a barrel, which would be just below the all-time high of US$70.85 on Aug. 30 last year after Hurricane Katrina hammered US oil production facilities in the Gulf of Mexico region.
"There is certainly the possibility [of oil prices hitting US$70]. The recent events have attracted speculators and oil has become a lot like an investment," Shum said.
Meanwhile, the geo-political fallout from Iran's decision to resume sensitive nuclear activities and unrest in Nigeria, Africa's biggest oil producer, remained key ingredients to the market's volatility.
"Geo-politics is behind the surge in oil pricing... The Nigerian unrest has caused a disruption in supply," Shum said.
Anglo-Dutch energy giant Shell, Nigeria's biggest producer and so far the main target of the attacks by separatist militants, has been forced to cut output by 226,000 barrels per day since the crisis began over a week ago.
Iran, the second-biggest crude oil producer in the OPEC cartel, has warned Western powers that sanctions over its controversial nuclear program could provoke a world oil crisis.
The geo-political situation overshadowed the US Department of Energy's report on Wednesday that US energy stockpiles rose across the board in the week ended Jan. 13, news that would normally depress oil prices.
Crude stocks rose 2.7 million barrels over the week to total 321.4 million barrels, it said.
Supplies of distillate products, used to make heating fuel and diesel, rose 900,000 barrels to 134.7 million. Reserves of gasoline, or petrol, were up 2.8 million barrels at 211.6 million.
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi yesterday lavished US President Donald Trump with praise and vows of a “golden age” of ties on his visit to Tokyo, before inking a deal with Washington aimed at securing critical minerals. Takaichi — Japan’s first female prime minister — pulled out all the stops for Trump in her opening test on the international stage and even announced that she would nominate him for a Nobel Peace Prize, the White House said. Trump has become increasingly focused on the Nobel since his return to power in January and claims to have ended several conflicts around the world,
UKRAINE, NVIDIA: The US leader said the subject of Russia’s war had come up ‘very strongly,’ while Jenson Huang was hoping that the conversation was good Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and US President Donald Trump had differing takes following their meeting in Busan, South Korea, yesterday. Xi said that the two sides should complete follow-up work as soon as possible to deliver tangible results that would provide “peace of mind” to China, the US and the rest of the world, while Trump hailed the “great success” of the talks. The two discussed trade, including a deal to reduce tariffs slapped on China for its role in the fentanyl trade, as well as cooperation in ending the war in Ukraine, among other issues, but they did not mention
REASSURANCE: The US said Taiwan’s interests would not be harmed during the talk and that it remains steadfast in its support for the nation, the foreign minister said US President Donald Trump on Friday said he would bring up Taiwan with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) during a meeting on the sidelines of the APEC Summit in South Korea this week. “I will be talking about Taiwan [with Xi],” Trump told reporters before he departed for his trip to Asia, adding that he had “a lot of respect for Taiwan.” “We have a lot to talk about with President Xi, and he has a lot to talk about with us. I think we’ll have a good meeting,” Trump said. Taiwan has long been a contentious issue between the US and China.
GLOBAL PROJECT: Underseas cables ‘are the nervous system of democratic connectivity,’ which is under stress, Member of the European Parliament Rihards Kols said The government yesterday launched an initiative to promote global cooperation on improved security of undersea cables, following reported disruptions of such cables near Taiwan and around the world. The Management Initiative on International Undersea Cables aims to “bring together stakeholders, align standards, promote best practices and turn shared concerns into beneficial cooperation,” Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said at a seminar in Taipei. The project would be known as “RISK,” an acronym for risk mitigation, information sharing, systemic reform and knowledge building, he said at the seminar, titled “Taiwan-Europe Subsea Cable Security Cooperation Forum.” Taiwan sits at a vital junction on
RSS