Price of Crude Oil Rises to Record After DOE Report

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he price of crude oil in New York set a new high on Thursday after a report from the U.S. Department of Energy showed that U.S. supplies of distillate fuels, including heating oil and diesel, decreased in the week ended Oct. 8, Bloomberg reported.

Crude oil for November delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange rose as high as $54.88 during the trading session before closing at $54.76, Bloomberg said. Both prices were the highest since futures began trading in 1983.

Oil futures were up 72% from a year earlier. Prices have risen in 18 of the last 21 sessions.

DOE said distillate inventories fell 2.5 million barrels to 120.9 million, the lowest since the week ended July 23. Heating oil stockpiles declined 1.2 million barrels to 50 million barrels, DOE said.

So far this week, oil prices have fluctuated by about $3 a barrel after concern that rising energy costs would slow the global economy and oil demand growth halted a rally that drove crude prices to six straight records, Bloomberg said.