SINGAPORE Oil prices hovered above $78 a barrel Friday in Asia amid mixed signals about global crude demand.Benchmark crude for April delivery was up 16 cents to $78.33 a barrel at midday Singapore time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell $1.83 to settle at $78.17.
Oil prices have bobbed between $70 and $80 for most of the last six months as investors mull growing crude demand in developing countries such as China offset by flagging consumption in developed countries.Even a cold winter in the U.S. has failed to boost demand for heating oil.”The absence of any sustained seasonal draw in heating oil inventories is still striking,” Barclays Capital said in a report. “The inventory overhang remains stubbornly high.””We continue to expect strong demand growth from China in 2010.”
Crude prices were bolstered by a weaker U.S. dollar, as dollar-based commodities such as oil become cheaper for investors with other currencies when the dollar falls. The euro rose to $1.3585 on Friday from $1.3547 the previous day.In other Nymex trading in March contracts, heating oil fell 0.37 cent to $1.9825 a gallon, while gasoline rose 0.87 cent to $2.0457 a gallon. Natural gas prices gained 4.8 cents to $4.815 per 1,000 cubic feet.In London, Brent crude was up 10 cents at $76.39 on the ICE futures exchange.(AP)
Santosamaru 