Oil Finishes Over $107 a Barrel
Oil rose for a sixth trading day, rising $1.55 to finish at $107.83 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, a more than nine-month high, Bloomberg reported.
The closing price was the highest on the Nymex since May 4, when crude topped $109 a barrel, according to Bloomberg Nymex figures.
Oil has risen more than 3% this week on speculation that tensions with Iran over its nuclear program may threaten supplies. Prices have risen 8.4% in the past year, Bloomberg said.
Last week was the first five-day trading week since April that oil had finished at more than $100 in all five days.
Meanwhile, the Department of Energy reported Thursday that oil inventories rose 1.6 million barrels last week.
Gasoline supplies fell by 650,000 barrels, while distillates, which include diesel, fell by 200,000 barrels. Distillate supplies were forecast to drop 1.5 million barrels.
Diesel and gasoline prices both rose for a fourth straight week, DOE reported earlier this week.
European-traded Brent crude oil rose $1.58 Thursday to $124.48 a barrel, and its premium to Nymex-traded West Texas Intermediate crude widened to $17.62 a barrel, from $16.62 on Wednesday, Bloomberg said.
