April 19, 2008	Saturday	Rabi-us-Sani 12, 1429

LONDON, April 18: Crude oil prices crossed 116 dollars a barrel for the first time on Friday after a pipeline attack in Nigeria, Africa’s biggest oil producer.

New York’s main oil futures contract, light sweet crude for delivery in May, shot up to $116.10 around 1520 GMT, before easing back to $115.46.

Oil prices pulled back earlier on Friday after striking record highs above $115 this week on the back of a weakening US dollar and weak American energy stockpiles, analysts said.

In London, Brent North Sea crude for June slid 87 cents to $111.56. The contract touched a historic $113.38 on Thursday.

The most prominent militant group in Nigeria’s southern oil-producing region said Friday it had sabotaged a major oil supply pipeline belonging to Anglo-Dutch oil group Shell.

Shell, Nigeria’s largest oil operator accounting for around half of the country’s 2.1 million barrels per day output, has seen a wave of attacks on its facilities in recent months.

Speaking before the $116 breakthrough in New York, Sucden analyst Andrey Kryuchenkov said trading had been “relatively quiet but still supported by persistent supply concerns and the weak dollar.”

“The broad weakness in the US dollar is still supporting commodities; while oil investors are also concerned about tight gasoline supplies in the US ahead of the summer driving season when demand for gasoline peaks,” Kryuchenkov said.Prices rocketed to historic heights this week after news of sliding energy stockpiles in key consumer the US.

US gasoline stocks fell 5.5 million barrels in the week ending April 11, considerably more than market expectations for a fall of 1.8 million barrels.

Traders are focused on gasoline supplies ahead of the peak demand season for motor fuel that starts in May when Americans take to their cars for their holidays.

US crude oil inventories slumped 2.3 million barrels last week compared with the consensus forecast for a drop of 1.8 million.

Crude reserves in the United States now stand at 313.7 million barrels, in the lower half of the average range for this time of year.—AFP