April 25, 2008	Friday	Rabi-us-Sani 18, 1429

LONDON, April 24: Oil prices fell on Thursday as traders took profits after this week’s record-breaking run on the back of the strengthening dollar and rising US crude stockpiles.

New York’s main oil futures contract, light sweet crude for delivery in June, dropped $1.21 to $117.09 a barrel. The May contract had struck a record high $119.90 before expiring on Tuesday. London’s Brent North Sea crude for June delivery lost 85 cents to $115.61 on Thursday, after hitting a peak of $116.75 on Tuesday.

“Crude futures slipped lower, falling under pressure from the recovering greenback,” said Sucden analyst Andrey Kryuchenkov.

“It seems that a larger-than-expected increase in US crude inventories during last week and a stronger dollar were good excuses for some investors to book profits.”

US crude reserves rose 2.4 million barrels last week, beating market expectations for a 1.5-million-barrel gain.

“The dollar continued to strengthen against the euro, putting some downward pressure on oil prices and correcting after hitting a record low beyond $1.60 against the single currency earlier this week,” Kryuchenkov noted.

A stronger US currency makes dollar-priced crude more expensive for foreign buyers and therefore tends to discourage demand.

However, prices were supported by ongoing supply worries.

—AFP