What's Moving the Oil Markets?

•-Global crude futures neared $60/barrel Friday, amidst thin volumes on the back of fund buying, sources said, as the US enters the second day of it's Thanksgiving holiday. "The rally is on the back of a bit of fund buying. Some buys kicked in at $59.50/barrel and the funds got involved pushing prices up," a London-based broker said.

•January ICE Brent hit $60/barrel four times in ten minutes but failed to break above it as a succession of "sell stops were activated at that level," a broker said.

•Fundamentally there is little news to push the market and with volumes being thin price movements can be exaggerated, market players said.

•However, a potential bullish factor, was the frequent militant attacks on facilities owned by Eni's Nigerian subsidiary Agip, causing December-loading delays at the Brass terminal, a trader said. Flow stations that feed the 200,000 b/d Brass crude export terminal have been shut down, resulting in a loss of around 55,000 b/d.

Updated: 11/24/07