NEW YORK (AFP) — Crude-oil futures surged to new record peaks Tuesday, driven higher by speculation that OPEC will cut output and geopolitical tensions in Venezuela and Nigeria.
A Texas oil refinery explosion and bitter cold weather in the United States, the world's biggest energy consumer, also underpinned prices, analysts said.
New York's main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in March, soared to an all-time intraday high of 100.10 dollars a barrel before closing up 4.51 dollars at a record 100.01 dollars.
The New York contract crossed the century mark for the first time on January 2 before hitting the previous intraday record of 100.09 dollars the next day.
In London, Brent North Sea crude for April delivery leaped to a record 98.70 dollars before settling at 98.56 dollars a barrel, a gain of 3.65 dollars.
"The oil bulls were buffeted with unrelenting winter weather and an oil refinery explosion and an OPEC cartel that has no regard for the world economy," said Phil Flynn, an analyst at Alaron Trading.
Analysts said there was growing speculation that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, which supply about 40 percent of the world's oil, would cut output at its March 5 meeting in Vienna.
Another factor supporting prices was the ongoing row between Venezuela and ExxonMobil over nationalized assets of the US giant.
"Oil futures surged higher amid technical buying underpinned by the ongoing saga between Venezuela and Exxon and on speculation surrounding OPEC's next move when they meet in March," said Sucden analyst Nimit Khamar.
"There is clear evidence that speculators are coming back into the oil market."
Iran has declined to rule out that OPEC would cut production next month.
"Over the last week we have seen numerous suggestions from OPEC members that they will either keep output steady or cut during the next meeting," said Sucden's Khamar.
"However, at current prices OPEC my find it difficult to justify a cut in production."
Earlier this month, OPEC left its official daily output ceiling at 29.67 million barrels of oil.
"OPEC is showing every sign that it will move to cut production at it March meeting," Alaron's Flynn said. "It seems that OPEC is only focused on price and the economy be dammed.
Mike Fitzpatrick at MF Global said that geopolitics, OPEC uncertainty and Monday's refinery fire in Texas continued to overshadow a weak demand outlook.
"Venezuela taking action to cut off supplies to Exxon last week has kept the market on edge despite efforts by officialdom to downplay the actual impact on supplies."
US oil major ExxonMobil, the world's biggest oil company, says it has won court orders in New York, London, the Netherlands and the Netherlands Antilles freezing some 12 billion dollars of Venezuela's state-owned oil producer PDVSA assets in those jurisdictions.
The legal battle relates to ExxonMobil's bid to secure compensation after Venezuela's government nationalized key oil fields in the Orinoco basin, including two ExxonMobil operations.
Traders are on alert over possible further unrest in Nigeria, Africa's biggest crude producer. Output from the Forcados export terminal in southern Nigeria is back up to between 150,000 and 200,000 barrels per day after a repair of a pipeline damaged by sabotage, Royal Dutch Shell said Tuesday.
Since the beginning of 2006, attacks by militants in the region have cut domestic oil production by 25 percent.
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