WTI nears record high

Crude oil prices jumped to near-record levels in New York on Tuesday on concerns over what OPEC will do with production quotas and on a continuing dispute between Venezuela and the United States over oil.

March contracts for West Texas Intermediate crude added $4.55 to $100.05 per barrel just before the close of floor trade on the New York Mercantile Exchange, just below the record of $100.09 per barrel reached on 3 January.

Meanwhile, Brent crude added $3.24 to $98.15 per barrel on the ICE Futures Europe exchange in London.

A major reason for the gains was the possibility that the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries will cut production quotas when it meets in March.

Not all OPEC officials are in agreement that the cuts will be instituted, but they do seem to agree that production will not be increased.

Other issues tending to send prices higher included an explosion and fire that has knocked out production at a Texas refinery for at least two months and the continuing dispute between Venezuela and the United States over court orders freezing assets of the Venezuelan state-owned oil company after a suit was filed by ExxonMobil (NYSE: XOM) after losses it sustained when Venezuela nationalized some oil projects there.

Nymex March gasoline added 11 cents to $2.60 per gallon and April heating oil was up 12 cents to $2.74 per gallon while April natural gas jumped 34 cents to $9.01 per million British thermal units.