Crude oil futures rallied more than US$1 a barrel on Friday and the price of natural gas regained some ground after sinking a day earlier to its lowest level in four-and-a-half months.<\/p>\n
Light sweet crude for February delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange rose US$1.42 to settle at US$64.21 a barrel. In London, Brent crude gained US$1.59 to settle at US$62.72 per barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.<\/p>\n
Many factors have propelled oil prices from an average of US$19.73 per barrel back in January 2002 to where it is today.<\/p>\n
Strong global demand and a thin supply cushion are the underlying reasons, analysts say, and because of these conditions every output disruption — or potential threat to disruption — feeds into a bullish outlook, sending prices higher. The war in Iraq, labor unrest in Nigeria and Gulf of Mexico hurricanes are just a few of production snags the industry has faced in recent years.<\/p>\n