Oil Rises Past $81 a Barrel
Two days after closing at below $80 for the first time in more than a week, oil futures crept past $81 a barrel on concerns a tropical depression could affect Gulf of Mexico oil production, Bloomberg reported.
Benchmark light sweet crude oil futures rose to as high as $81.36 a barrel early Thursday following Wednesday’s $80.30 closing price on the New York Mercantile Exchange, Bloomberg said.
Tuesday’s closing price of $79.53 was the first below $80 since Sept. 14. Futures topped the $80 closing level for the first time on Sept. 13.
The unnamed Tropical Depression 13 could strengthen into a tropical storm as it moved on a track toward Mexico in the western Gulf, the National Hurricane Center’s Web site said.
