April 26, 2008	Saturday	Rabi-us-Sani 19, 1429

LONDON, April 25: Oil prices climbed towards this week’s record peaks on Friday as traders fretted over threats to global energy supplies in Britain and Nigeria, analysts said.

New York’s main oil futures contract, light sweet crude for delivery in June, rallied $1.68 to $117.74 a barrel.

London’s Brent North Sea crude for June rose $1.57 to $115.91.

This week, prices rocketed to historic highs as investors seized on mounting supply worries and the weak US currency, which makes dollar-priced crude cheaper for foreign buyers and tends to encourage demand.

New York crude jumped close to $120, hitting a record high $119.90 on Tuesday, before dipping in line with the strengthening US currency.

Brent crude, meanwhile, set a high of $116.87 on Thursday as fears grew over a looming strike at Grangemouth, one of Britain’s biggest oil refineries.

In Nigeria on Friday, the most prominent armed group in the southern oil-producing region sabotaged a supply pipeline belonging to Shell.

“Crude futures recovered after news emerged that Nigerian rebels attacked a pipeline in the Niger Delta,” said Sucden analyst Andrey Kryuchenkov.—AFP