February 15, 2003	Saturday	Zul Hijjah 13, 1423

LONDON, Feb 14: IPE Brent crude oil futures closed out an indecisive session slightly higher on Friday after the chief UN weapons inspector delivered a mixed verdict on Baghdad’s cooperation with UN inspections in Iraq.

Hans Blix told the Security Council his inspectors had found no hard evidence of weapons of mass destruction but that many proscribed weapons remained unaccounted for.

By the early 1800 GMT close, April Brent was up seven cents $32.53 a barrel having peaked earlier at $32.76 and touched a low of $32.15 a barrel.

US crude added 34 cents to $36.70 a barrel after setting a two-year peak of $36.85 in early trade.

Dealers said the report sounded less critical than Blix’s previous presentation in January but that war still appeared inevitable.

“Most oil traders think the outcome of all this is a foregone conclusion: War. So this is just a showpiece event,” said one dealer.

Blix said that while Iraq’s Samoud 2 missile exceeded the UN’s permitted range, Baghdad had given full access to inspectors.

He also said satellite images shown by the United States did not prove Iraq was clearing a site of forbidden munitions.

Oil markets, already on edge because of the Iraq jitters, hit session highs earlier when white-collar oil workers in Nigeria, the world’s seventh largest oil exporter, said they would launch a strike that may disrupt crude exports.

Commercial crude oil stockpiles in the world’s biggest consumer fell last week to their lowest levels since 1975.—Reuters