الرئيسية
By PABLO GORONDI, AP
Oil prices rose to above $101 a barrel Friday as traders
awaited a U.S. jobs report for evidence about the strength of the U.S.
economy and demand for crude.
By early afternoon in Europe,
benchmark crude for January delivery was up from $101.02 to $101.22 a
barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The
contract fell 16 cents to settle at $100.20 on Thursday.
In London, Brent crude was up $1.16 cents at $110.15 on the ICE Futures exchange.
Markets
were also bolstered by a speech by German Chancellor Angela Merkel
calling for tighter fiscal discipline in the European Union, which
provided hope that the eurozone would be taking more significant steps
to control its debt crisis and ensure the future of its common currency.
Crude
has jumped from $75 during the last two months amid signs the U.S.
economy will likely avoid a recession. Investors will be closely
watching the Labor Department's November unemployment report later
Friday for evidence economic growth is strengthening, which could
justify higher crude prices.
Analysts expect the economy added about 120,000 jobs last month.
"All
eyes remain on the release of the U.S. non-farm payrolls data that
could provide a better insight of the U.S. economic conditions, giving
the market some clear direction," said a report from Sucden Financial in
London.
Traders are also concerned about rising tensions over
possible sanction against Iran, OPEC's second-largest producer, because
of its nuclear program. Some analysts, such as J.P. Morgan, say that
Iran may pre-emptively cut oil exports if sanctions are imminent, a move
that would send oil prices soaring.
"This would undoubtedly
shock the oil market, and the initial market shock could be in the $20
to $30 per barrel range," J.P. Morgan said in a report. "The risks of
such a disruption have materially increased."
In other Nymex
trading, natural gas fell 3.4 cents at $3.614 per 1,000 cubic feet.
Heating oil added 5.67 cents to $3.0262 a gallon and gasoline futures
gained 6.61 cents to $2.6240 a gallon.
___
Alex Kennedy in Singapore contributed to this report.
Oil prices rose to above $101 a barrel Friday as traders
awaited a U.S. jobs report for evidence about the strength of the U.S.
economy and demand for crude.
By early afternoon in Europe,
benchmark crude for January delivery was up from $101.02 to $101.22 a
barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The
contract fell 16 cents to settle at $100.20 on Thursday.
In London, Brent crude was up $1.16 cents at $110.15 on the ICE Futures exchange.
Markets
were also bolstered by a speech by German Chancellor Angela Merkel
calling for tighter fiscal discipline in the European Union, which
provided hope that the eurozone would be taking more significant steps
to control its debt crisis and ensure the future of its common currency.
Crude
has jumped from $75 during the last two months amid signs the U.S.
economy will likely avoid a recession. Investors will be closely
watching the Labor Department's November unemployment report later
Friday for evidence economic growth is strengthening, which could
justify higher crude prices.
Analysts expect the economy added about 120,000 jobs last month.
"All
eyes remain on the release of the U.S. non-farm payrolls data that
could provide a better insight of the U.S. economic conditions, giving
the market some clear direction," said a report from Sucden Financial in
London.
Traders are also concerned about rising tensions over
possible sanction against Iran, OPEC's second-largest producer, because
of its nuclear program. Some analysts, such as J.P. Morgan, say that
Iran may pre-emptively cut oil exports if sanctions are imminent, a move
that would send oil prices soaring.
"This would undoubtedly
shock the oil market, and the initial market shock could be in the $20
to $30 per barrel range," J.P. Morgan said in a report. "The risks of
such a disruption have materially increased."
In other Nymex
trading, natural gas fell 3.4 cents at $3.614 per 1,000 cubic feet.
Heating oil added 5.67 cents to $3.0262 a gallon and gasoline futures
gained 6.61 cents to $2.6240 a gallon.
___
Alex Kennedy in Singapore contributed to this report.