LONDON, April 1: World oil prices soared on Friday, underpinned by worries about a lack of US refining capacity and building on strong gains caused by a banking study that forecast crude could strike $100 per barrel. London’s Brent North Sea crude oil for delivery in May surged $1.24 to $55.53 after peaking at $55.85, and jumping $2.20 to close at $54.29 the previous day. It remained close to a historic record of $56.15, reached on March 17. New York’s main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in May, soared $1.25 to $56.65 per barrel in early deals, after closing up $1.41 on Thursday. “The market is being pushed up by very strong product markets,” Barclays Capital analyst Kevin Norrish said. “There are real concerns about product availability, that’s what underpinning the strength of the market at the moment.”—AFP
