Oil prices hit new highs on Norway strike fears

LONDON – Oil prices raced up to new record highs yesterday, closing in on US$56 (N$353) in New York amid fears a strike could cripple supplies from Norway, the world’s third-largest oil exporter.

New York’s main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in December, hit a new all-time high of US$55,67 a barrel in electronic trading. The price of Brent North Sea crude oil for delivery in November scaled a new historic peak of US$51,90 a barrel in electronic deals.Prices continued their seemingly relentless record-breaking streak after a Norwegian shipowners association threatened to halt oil shipments in support of industrial action that has weighed on the industry since July.Norges Rederiforbund, an association that includes companies that serve the oil industry, said it would stage a “sympathy lock-out,” suspending the activities of 94 of its ships.”The impact of this secondary lockout, which comes into force from midnight (2200 GMT) yesterday, November 8 2004, will then have immediate effect, and bring the production of oil and gas on the Norwegian shelf to a standstill within a week,” the association said in a statement.However, analysts noted that the Norwegian government has a record of intervening to resolve labour disputes and was unlikely to allow the country’s oil production to be paralysed.”The Norwegian government has a history of using its tool of enforced mediation when labour disputes threaten to close down the production on the Norwegian continental shelf,” said oil analyst Anne Gjoen at Alfred Berg ABN Amro in Oslo.The NSA issued its threat in response to a stoppage organised by the Federation of Oil Workers (OFS) that has been running since early July and has cut the country’s daily hydrocarbons output by some 55 000 barrels.OFS officials agreed that forced mediation was a likely outcome.-Nampa-AFPThe price of Brent North Sea crude oil for delivery in November scaled a new historic peak of US$51,90 a barrel in electronic deals.Prices continued their seemingly relentless record-breaking streak after a Norwegian shipowners association threatened to halt oil shipments in support of industrial action that has weighed on the industry since July.Norges Rederiforbund, an association that includes companies that serve the oil industry, said it would stage a “sympathy lock-out,” suspending the activities of 94 of its ships.”The impact of this secondary lockout, which comes into force from midnight (2200 GMT) yesterday, November 8 2004, will then have immediate effect, and bring the production of oil and gas on the Norwegian shelf to a standstill within a week,” the association said in a statement.However, analysts noted that the Norwegian government has a record of intervening to resolve labour disputes and was unlikely to allow the country’s oil production to be paralysed.”The Norwegian government has a history of using its tool of enforced mediation when labour disputes threaten to close down the production on the Norwegian continental shelf,” said oil analyst Anne Gjoen at Alfred Berg ABN Amro in Oslo.The NSA issued its threat in response to a stoppage organised by the Federation of Oil Workers (OFS) that has been running since early July and has cut the country’s daily hydrocarbons output by some 55 000 barrels.OFS officials agreed that forced mediation was a likely outcome.-Nampa-AFP