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Oil crosses 91 dollars in Asian trade - UPDATE 2
SINGAPORE (Thomson Financial) - Crude oil briefly topped 91 dollars in Asian trade Friday on rising tensions in the Middle East following Turkey's military threat against Kurdish rebels in Iraq and new US sanctions on Iran. At 10.00 am (0200 GMT) New York's main futures contract, light sweet crude for delivery in December, was up 42 cents at 90.88 dollars a barrel after closing at 90.46 dollars in US trading overnight. It touched a new all-time high of 91.10 dollars earlier in Asia. Brent North Sea crude for December was up 52 cents at 88 dollars, also breaking records set in London overnight. Oil prices are 'being supported by an increase in geopolitical tensions and also market developments,' Australia's Commonwealth Bank said in a market commentary. 'The US has announced that it is imposing new sanctions on Iran,' it said. 'Oil markets also continued to have an eye on developments related to the current tensions between Turkey and Kurd rebels in Iraq,' it said. On Thursday, Turkish leaders lent extra weight to their threat of a military incursion against Kurdish separatists holed up in northern Iraq. Many of Iraq's oilfields are located in the north and any conflict with Turkey could disrupt supplies, analysts said. Commonwealth Bank said the market was also reacting to a sharp decline in US energy inventories last week which came ahead of the northern hemisphere winter, when demand for heating fuel peaks. US energy supplies are closely monitored because the United States is the world's biggest energy consumer. afp/ms ms COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Financial News Limited 2007. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Thomson Financial News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Financial News. Neither the Subscriber nor AFX News warrants the completeness or accuracy of the Service or the suitability of the Service as a trading aid and neither accepts any liability for losses howsoever incurred. The content on this site, including news, quotes, data and other information, is provided by AFX News and its third party content providers for your personal information only, and neither AFX News nor its third party content providers shall be liable for any errors, inaccuracies or delays in content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon.
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Oil has risen to a new all-time record high during trading in Asia, passing US$91.10 at 10:23 p.m. on October 25 (eastern time).

In electronic trading at the NYMEX Crude Futures in the United States touched a record price of, at US$92.22, according to ''Bloomberg'', setting another record all-time high. On the IntercontinentalExchange Brent Crude futures reached US$89.30 (basis December) as of 8:34 a.m..

NYMEX Crude closed at $91.86, while ICE Brent closed at $88.69, at the conclusion of Friday's trading.

The raise come when the United States announced that it had an "unexpected loss" in the nation's stockpile of oil. The fear that Turkey may launch a large scale attack on Kurdish Militants inside Iraq is also being blamed for the raise in prices and the U.S. imposed more sanctions on Iran for continuing to enrich uranium.

Australia's Commonwealth Banks states that the raise is "being supported by an increase in geopolitical tensions and also market developments. The US has announced that it is imposing new sanctions on Iran, Oil markets also continued to have an eye on developments related to the current tensions between Turkey and Kurd rebels in Iraq."

OPEC has agreed that by November 1, 2007, they will increase the amount of barrels of oil they produce by 500,000 barrels a day. The U.S. says that they would like that number increased.