Oil Update
OIL UPDATE....Welcome to summer!
Crude oil jumped above $140 a barrel to a record as Libya threatened to cut output, OPEC's president said prices may reach $170 by the summer and the dollar weakened.On the bright side, Khelil doesn't actually think a political crisis is likely. He says he's pretty sure oil prices will stay under $200 a barrel. Comforting words indeed.....A decision by the ECB to increase interest rates in July may cause the dollar to decline and prompt investors to buy more oil, [Chakib] Khelil, who is also the Algerian oil minister, told the Paris- based television channel. Prices would ease toward the end of the year, he said.
Threats against Iran would also support prices during the summer, he said. A political crisis that would stop Iran's oil production would push prices over $200 a barrel, to possibly $400 a barrel, he said.