Oil rose in New York on signs that the U.S. economic recovery is reducing the nation’s crude inventories, and on concern that tensions with Iran may lead to disruptions in exports from the Middle East.
Futures advanced as much as 1.4 percent after the American Petroleum Institute said crude inventories slid the most in six weeks in the seven days ended Jan. 13. Energy Department data today may show supplies climbed for a fourth week, according to a Bloomberg News survey of analysts before the API numbers were released. Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations said yesterday that closing the Strait of Hormuz, the passageway for about a fifth of the world’s oil trade, is an option if his country’s security is endangered.
“It was a big draw” in crude inventories reported by the API, said Hannes Loacker, an analyst at Raiffeisen AG in Vienna. “So expectations for the Energy Department numbers definitely become more bullish. On the hand, this may bring disappointment if the crude numbers do not drop.
Crude for February delivery gained as much as $1.42 to $102.01 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange and was at $101.74 at 1:03 p.m. London time. The contract, which expires tomorrow, is up 2.9 percent this year. The more active March contract rose $1.16 to $101.92.
Brent oil for March settlement advanced 84 cents, or 0.8 percent, to $111.50 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange. The European benchmark contract’s premium to West Texas Intermediate futures was at $9.58, compared with $9.90 yesterday and a record $27.88 on Oct. 14.
