NYMEX oil up as US presses Iraq on arms inspection
www.forbes.com Reuters, 01.24.03, 11:24 AM ET
NEW YORK, Jan 24 (Reuters) - NYMEX crude futures jumped late morning on Friday as the United States pressed for more credible interviews of Iraqi scientists by U.N. arms inspectors to see if Iraq is keeping banned weapons.
At 11:15 a.m. EST (1615 GMT), NYMEX March crude
"There's new length buying going on," said a NYMEX trader, referring to the opening of long positions.
In early trade, prices moved sideways near unchanged with sellers prompted by news of rising Venezuelan oil exports.
In London, Brent March crude
The United States continued to make its case for war on Friday, saying it had evidence Iraq has maintained a program to produce weapons that have been banned since the 1991 Gulf War.
The White House said Iraq's refusal to allow scientist to be interviewed without minders was "unacceptable," Such interviews should be allowed without delay, it said.
The United Nations will get its report from weapons inspectors on Monday and U.S. President George W. Bush will address the nation the following day.
Opposition to the U.S. stand has mounted, with China and Russia joining France, Germany and Canada on Thursday in urging that U.N. weapons inspectors be given more time in Iraq.
Two U.S. Navy vessels including a hospital ship sailed along the Suez Canal on Friday, heading for the Red Sea and on to the Gulf amid a military build-up for a potential war against Iraq, shipping sources said.
And a British ship carrying arms and ammunition would arrive at the Mediterranean city of Port Said at the entrance of the Suez Canal on Saturday, also headed to the Gulf, the sources added. In Caracas, shipping data showed that Venezuelan oil exports jumped 62 percent in the week to Friday to 688,000 barrels per day, or 25 percent of capacity, as the government struggled to break a 54-day-old strike in the world's fifth largest exporter, shipping data showed on Friday.
The recovery in exports adds weight to reports of rising flows at the wellhead in the OPEC member state, where a bitter political conflict is being played out in the oil industry, a key supplier to the United States.
Venezuela exported 2.7 million bpd before the strike, which is intended to force President Hugo Chavez from office, and exports have averaged 519,000 bpd over the past four weeks.
On Friday, striking oil workers said Venezuela's oil output had risen to 812,000 barrels per day (bpd) -- equivalent to 25 percent of capacity.
Earlier in the week, NYMEX crude hit a two-year high of $35.20 on fears of a U.S.-led war on Iraq.
U.S. oil inventory data released Thursday showed an unexpected rise in crude oil stocks in the week to last Friday, defying expectations that supplies would fall below 270 million barrels for the first time since 1975.
NYMEX February heating oil
Gasoline futures were up as European oil traders are shipping gasoline to Venezuela to make up for its scarce fuel supplies during an eight-week general strike, dealers said on Friday.
NYMEX February gasoline