Crude Oil Rises Above $78, Adds More Than $6 On Week

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Crude oil continued to rise on Friday, extending a yearly high, as some encouraging industrial production data gave traders higher hopes for energy demand.

Light sweet crude for November climbed to $78.53 a barrel, up 95 cents on the session. Prices touched as low as $76.82 but later reached above $78.75.

A Federal Reserve report showed that industrial production increased by 0.7 percent in September following an upwardly revised 1.2 percent increase in August. Economists had been expecting a much more modest increase in production of about 0.2 percent.

Later, the Reuters/University of Michigan consumer sentiment index fell to 69.4 in October from the final September reading of 73.5. Economists had been expecting a much more modest decrease to a reading of 73.3.

Crude oil gained $6.51 on the week, extending a recent uptrend. Oil is up $8.13 in October.

Prices soared $2.40 yesterday after the Energy Information Administration reported crude oil inventories increased by 400,000 barrels in the week ended October 9, compared to the build of 2.2 million barrels projected by analysts.

Motor gasoline inventories decreased by 5.2 million barrels last week, compared to the projected rise of 1.6 million barrels.

(Market News Provided by RTTNews)