Price of crude falls as investors bet on exports
THE price of Brent crude oil fell yesterday as Libya’s civil war appeared to near an end and investors anticipated the resumption of oil exports from the country, which is part of Opec.
If production returns to the African nation it could ease petrol prices and increase disposable income, potentially boosting the recovery.
The Libyan oil industry could be able to produce up to 1m barrels per day (bpd) within months, experts said last night, but it will take far longer for the nation to return to its pre-conflict level of 1.6m bpd.
Brent crude was down more than one per cent last night, falling $1.11 to $107.37 per barrel. During the early weeks of the crisis oil prices hit $127.02 a barrel as unrest in oil producing nations spread across north Africa and the Middle East. It was the highest oil had gone since July 2008, when it touched $147 per barrel.