Oil futures prices dipped Friday as traders raked in profits prior to the weekend from the previous 4 days of rising international crude markets. But analysts say the overall mood remains bullish, with the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries expected to announce production cuts at its Jan. 17 meeting.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, the February contract for benchmark US sweet, light crudes lost 19� to $27.95/bbl, while the March contract was down 38� to $27.16/bbl.
However, home heating oil for February delivery edged up 0.01� to 86.13�/gal, with February unleaded gasoline gaining 0.2� to 82.06�/gal. Natural gas for the same month surged by 29.5� to $9.26/Mcf on the NYMEX.
In London, North Sea Brent crude closed at $25.18/bbl, down 17� for the day after trading as high as $26.02/bbl Friday on the International Petroleum Exchange. The natural gas contract for February was also down 8� to the equivalent of $3.76/Mcf on the IPE.
The average price for OPEC�s basket of seven crudes edged up 26� to $23.51/bbl Friday. But for the week, the basket price averaged $22.50/bbl, up from $21.59/bbl the previous week.
For 2000 as a whole, the OPEC basket price averaged $27.60/bbl, up sharply from an average $17.47/bbl in 1999, officials reported Monday.
