Crude Little Changed
Dec 4th, 2008 | By Doug Casey | Category: Financial NewsIn the energy market Wednesday, oil prices inched lower, with crude for January delivery closing at $46.79/barrel, down 17 cents. January reformulated gasoline lost 1.68 cents, to $1.0415/gallon.
In its weekly inventory report, the Energy Information Administration said that crude stocks fell for the first time in 10 weeks, easing 400,000 barrels for the week ended November 28. Analysts had been looking for a 2 million barrel increase.
The EIA reported that gasoline supplies also dropped, by 1.6 million barrels, and that distillates were off 1.7 million barrels. Refineries were operating at 84.3% of capacity, down from 86.2% a week earlier.
OPEC continued to send the message that it will cut production at its meeting in two weeks, with Qatar’s oil minister Abdullah bin Hamad al-Attiyah saying that the group wants crude oil prices at between $70 and $80 a barrel “because $70 is the minimum price at which we can [continue to] invest.”
At the same time, though, OPEC President Chakib Khelil admitted that the cartel will need six months to remove excess crude oil from the market and push prices up.
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Doug Casey is a contrarian investor, sought-after public speaker and author of several books. His work "Crisis Investing" held the position of # 1 bestseller on the New York Times list for 26 consecutive weeks. Doug's unusual views on the economy - and just about everything else - have gained a huge following in the investment community, and it certainly helps that his stock recommendations of undervalued junior exploration companies have made his subscribers millions. Now in its 27th year, Doug's monthly newsletter, the International Speculator, is one of the most established and esteemed publications on gold, silver and other natural resource investments. Together with the Casey Energy Speculator, it covers a broad range of carefully selected stocks with the very real potential of double- and triple-digit returns within 12 to 24 months.