By the OGJ Online Staff
HOUSTON, Apr. 24 -- Energy futures closed mixed in trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange Monday with gasoline futures advancing slightly upon news that a Valero Energy Corp. refinery gasoline unit in Corpus Christi, Tex., had resumed operations during the weekend.
Benchmark US light, sweet crude for June delivery rose by 3¢ to settle at $27.61/bbl while the July contract climbed by 4¢ to end at $27.88/bbl. In after-hours electronic trading, the two contracts rose as June sold for $27.83/bbl and July sold for $28.00/bbl.
Traders said the crude market was fairly directionless Monday. Last Thursday, gasoline futures reached a 10-month high when Valero Energy said a gasoline unit was down at its plant in Corpus Christi. The unit returned to full operations Saturday, Valero Energy spokeswoman Mary Rose Brown confirmed Monday.
The Valero Corpus Christi refinery has a crude capacity of 94,100 b/d.
Unleaded gasoline for May rose by 0.83¢ to settle at $1.0693/gal. Home heating oil for May lost 1.85¢/gal to settle at 75.15¢/gal. Natural gas for May slipped by 0.3¢ to settle at $5.13/Mcf.
On the International Petroleum Exchange in London Monday, North Sea Brent crude futures rose 16¢ to settle at $26.55/bbl while the July contract rose 7¢ to settle at $26.65/bbl. On the IPE, the May natural gas contract settled at the equivalent of $3.54/Mcf, down 2¢.
The average price for the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries� basket of seven crudes rose 8¢ to $24.57/bbl.
