Oil prices dropped below US$98 per barrel to the end a volatile week that mixed jitters about Europe’s debt with the prospect of tighter oil supplies and improving economic conditions in the US. The price of oil ended the week lower than it began, despite a surge of trading that temporarily pushed crude above US$100 at midweek for the first time since July. Yesterday benchmark crude fell US$1.41 to finish at US$97.41 per barrel in New York, in light trading ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday week.
In other energy trading, heating oil fell 5.07 cents to finish at $3.0325 per gallon, while gasoline futures fell 2.87 cents to end at $2.4784 per gallon. Natural gas dropped 9.4 cents to finish at $3.3160 per 1,000 cubic feet. The sharp price fluctuations in oil will ripple through energy markets, but analysts say the ups and downs this week probably won’t have much effect on retail gasoline prices. Pump prices fell nearly a penny yesterday to a national average of US$3.38 per gallon (89 cents a liter), according to AAA, Wright Express and Oil Price Information Service. A gallon of regular has lost 44 cents since hitting its 2011 peak near US$4 per gallon in May.
AP
