Crude oil passes US$94.00 a barrel; sets new all-time record high

October 31, 2007

Another record has been set in crude oil prices. The price of oil soared past US$94.00 a barrel. New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) crude oil for December delivery closed at US$94.23 per barrel, after peaking at $94.74, the highest price on record. In after hours trading futures have crossed over the $95.00 per barrel mark.

On the IntercontinentalExchange (ICE), December Brent Crude also rose to a record $90.63 after touching an all-time high of $90.94 with current futures are trading at over $91.00 a barrel.

Today's rise is said to be mainly caused by the United States Department of Energy's inventory report that showed an unexpected drop in crude oil stockpiles. Last week, U.S. stockpiles were down nearly four million barrels of oil.

Tropical Storm Noel is also believed to be a cause of rising prices. Because of the storm, one-fifth of Mexico's oil production was suspended while the storm passed, but production is expected to resume by the end of today.