Oil takes a breather; gas set to rise
Oil takes a breather; gas set to rise Oil prices fell on Friday (September 21) as investors chose to book profits. Markets observers were however of the opinion that oil`s record-breaking run has come to its end and it might be the turn of gasoline prices to take the upward swing. Gasoline prices have so far been steady or taken a fall, despite the rally that boosted oil to new record highs. Light, sweet crude for November delivery fell 16 cents, to settle at USD 81.62 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) after rising as high as USD 82.40 earlier. November crude became the benchmark front-month contract after the October contract expired Thursday at a record close of USD 83.32. In London, November Brent crude rose 21 cents, to settle at USD 79.30 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange. Overnight, the average price of a gallon of gas rose 0.6 cents, to USD 2.797, according to AAA and OPIS. On the NYMEX, October gasoline futures fell 2.06 cents, to settle at USD 2.1145 a gallon. Gasoline futures ended the week up 7.81 cents, or 3.8%. In other NYMEX trading, heating oil futures fell 0.47 cents, to settle at USD 2.2562 a gallon while October natural gas gained 7.2 cents, to settle at USD 6.08 per 1,000 cubic feet.
