North Sea shutdown lifts oil
Brent rises ahead of next week’s Opec meeting where producers are likely to decide on some form of supply cut to counter an emerging glut
Singapore — Oil prices rose by 1% on Wednesday ahead of an Opec meeting next week at which the producer club is expected to decide some form of supply cut to counter an emerging glut. The shutdown of Britain’s largest North Sea oilfield for repairs also supported prices, traders said. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $52.11 a barrel at 4.48am GMT, up 55c, or 1.1% from their last settlement. International Brent crude oil futures were up 57c, or 1%, at $60.78 a barrel. The Buzzard oilfield, which pumps about 150,000 barrels a day has closed temporarily after the discovery of pipe corrosion. A smaller field linked to Forties, Total’s Elgin-Franklin, is also shut for maintenance. As a result, trade sources said three cargoes due to load in December had been cancelled. Despite Wednesday’s rise, oil prices have still lost about 30% in value since early October, weighed down by an emerging supply overhang and by widespread weakness in financial markets. The crude oil ...
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