June 1, 2003	Sunday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 29, 1424

NEW YORK, May 31: Oil prices hit fresh five-week highs on Friday after gasoline stocks in the United States fell ahead of the peak demand season, stoking fears of a summer price spike.

US light crude futures gained 46 cents to settle at $29.56, hitting a peak at $29.65, the highest price since April 22. International benchmark Brent crude oil added 29 cents to $26.32 per barrel.

The gains came on the heels of Thursday’s 44-cent rise in Brent on US government data showing gasoline stocks dropping 3.4 million barrels last week.

Gasoline inventories fell heavily in the period before the traditional start of the US driving season and a fall at this point is not a healthy sign, said Paul Horsnell, an analyst with investment bank J.P. Morgan.

Some analysts have been predicting a spike in gasoline prices this summer, when US demand peaks, as inventories have remained stubbornly below normal all year.

Traders’ concern over low stocks has been exacerbated by signs that Opec exporters are preparing to make further reductions in oil supply at a meeting next month.

The cartel is worried that a post-war resumption of Iraqi crude exports could derail four years of careful oil market management, which has kept the price of its basket of seven crudes close to Opec’s central $25-per-barrel target.

Claude Mandil, the head of the International Energy Agency, which serves as an energy watchdog to 26 industrialized nations, on Thursday warned the cartel against further cuts, fearing higher prices could hit economic growth.—Reuters