LONDON, 31 March 2007 — The week-old standoff between London and Tehran over the Iranian detention of 15 British naval personnel sent oil prices surging past $69 here — a near seven-month high — and analysts warned they could rise further.
In London trade, the price of Brent North Sea crude for May delivery reached $69.14 a barrel — the highest level since Sept. 4 last year. Later yesterday it stood at $68.64 in electronic deals, up 76 cents. New York’s main oil futures contract, light sweet crude for delivery in May, climbed 42 cents to $66.45 in pit trading.
New York crude on Tuesday soared to $68.09 — a level last seen in early September — on rumors of military conflict with Iran.
“It wouldn’t surprise me if we saw $70 quite easily or beyond,” said Simon Hayley, senior international economist at Capital Economics.
Despite the week’s spike to crude — prices have shot by about $6.0 or more than 9.0 percent since last Friday — they remain a long way off record highs of above $78 a barrel struck last year.
In mid-2006, amid an already tight supply situation, concerns about geopolitical instability in producer regions pumped prices higher and led to the all-time highs above $78 per barrel.
Meanwhile, the dollar turned lower yesterday. The euro rose to 1.3372 dollars, from 1.3331 dollars in New York late on Thursday. The dollar stood at 117.34 yen in European trade, down from 118.02 yen late on Thursday. The euro was changing hands at 1.3372 dollars, against 1.3331 dollars on Thursday.
