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Oil prices hover over $35

19 February 2009 13:09 (UTC +04:00)

Bakuâ€“ APA-Economics. Oil prices rose slightly to above $35 a barrel Thursday in Asia despite grim U.S. economic news that pointed to a deep recession and weaker crude demand.
Light, sweet crude for March delivery rose 54 cents to $35.18 a barrel by late afternoon in Singapore on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract on Wednesday fell 31 cents to settle at $34.62.
The March contract expires on Friday, and traders switched their focus to the April contract, which rose 62 cents to $38.03.
In other Nymex trading, gasoline futures rose 0.83 cent to $1.07 a gallon. Heating oil gained 1.71 cents to $1.16 a gallon, while natural gas for March delivery jumped 3.0 cents to $4.24 per 1,000 cubic feet.
In London, the March Brent contract rose 98 cents to $40.54 on the ICE Futures exchange.
The Federal Reserve on Wednesday confirmed what many investors already suspected â€” that the U.S. economy has significantly deteriorated in the last few months.
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries has struggled to bolster prices as output cuts fail to keep up with falling demand.
Venezuelan Oil Minister Rafael Ramirez said Wednesday the group may cut production again at a meeting on March 15, on top of the reduction of 4.2 million barrels a day announced since September. Ramirez said the 13-member cartel would like prices to rise to $70 a barrel.
"OPEC is looking very weak right now," said Moltke-Leth said. "Thereâ€™s a lot of chatter from them, but the market isnâ€™t really listening."