Top Intl Post: Oil Prices Rise by Over $11

The top international post as of this afternoon is the surge in the price of crude oil reaching $139 a barrel. A story on Globe and Mail noted that the price could go as high as $150 per barrel, according to Morgan Stanley analysts.

The Globe and Mail story also reads:

Prices pushed sharply higher Friday after Morgan Stanley analyst Ole Slorer said he expected strong demand in Asia that could drive prices to $150 by July 4. Shipments from the Middle East are mimicking patterns seen in the third quarter last year, when Morgan Stanley based its “oil price spike” predictions on Atlantic Basin draws, he said.

A BBC NEWS article says the oil spike could be in response to the latest US unemployment rate information (US unemployment rat is currently 5.5%), but also mentions Morgan Stanley analyst Ole Slorer’s comments…

The rise came as US shares fell sharply in response to unemployment figures reaching 5.9%, a four-year high…

…Oil prices were given a boost on a report by Morgan Stanley analyst Ole Slorer, who suggested the price of oil could rocket to $150 as early as July.

The BBC NEWS story also noted that there are worries of the possibility workers in Nigeria going on strike:

Fears that workers at Chevron Corporation in Nigeria may go on strike and subsequently disrupt production and access to oil are also adding to market jitters.

NYTimes.com’s looks to the Israel’s recent threats to attack Iran as a possible effect on today’s oil costs…

Even as uncertainties abound about the fundamentals of the market, geopolitical tensions in the Middle East regained center stage after Israel’s transportation minister, Shaul Mofaz, said Friday that an attack on Iran’s nuclear sites looked “unavoidable.” Iran is the second-largest oil producer within the OPEC cartel and any interruptions in its exports could push prices higher levels.

Bloomberg.com manages to sum up all of these factors (Asia taking large shares and Ole Slorer’s comments, Israel’s latest threats, the weakening of the US dollar, the Unemployment rate)…

Crude oil rose more than $9 to a record as the dollar weakened after the U.S. unemployment rate grew the most in two decades and Morgan Stanley said prices may reach $150 within a month…

…`The Iranian risk premium which had left the market for some time is likely to return and hover over the market in the next few weeks,” said Antoine Halff, head of energy research at Newedge USA LLC in New York.

Image Credit: Bloomberg