LONDON, June 27: Oil prices rose on Friday on worries about the outlook for oil supplies from Iraq and Nigeria.

The price of reference Brent North Sea crude oil for August delivery rose by 41 cents to $27.45 per barrel in late trading here.

New York’s benchmark light sweet crude July contract won 34 cents at $29.35 in early deals.

Traders were concerned Iraqi exports will take longer to flow back to world markets than previous thought, said Orrin Middleton, analyst at investment bank Barclays Capital.

“Soon after the war, there was talk that (production in) Iraq would be up to three million barrels per day by the end of the year, now we are talking about two million.

“But given the current circumstances, this target may be too optimistic and could be cut in half,” he said.

Also causing some nervousness was the situation in Nigeria.

“I’m not aware of any fresh stories affecting the market but obviously there are concerns over whether a strike in Nigeria will impact output,” said analyst Andrew Whittock at stockbroker Williams de Broe.

Nigerian labour unions protesting a domestic fuel price hike have called for a nationwide general strike from Monday, a move which could disrupt production and force world oil prices up.

The government has declared the planned strike illegal, but the Nigeria Labour Congress has insisted it will shut the country down unless President Olusegun Obasanjo abandons the 54-per cent petrol price rise.

Output from Nigeria — Africa’s largest oil exporter — had climbed steadily in 2002 until March this year, when clashes between rival ethnic groups and government troops prompted several oil majors to shut down operations.

Nigeria, a member of the Opec, typically produces around 2.5 per cent of the world’s daily crude output.

Adding to worries about the situation in the African producer, company and navy sources said Nigerian kidnappers had seized three oil workers — two Filipinos and a German — working in the swamps of the Niger Delta and are holding them for ransom.—AFP