Oil prices push on Nymex gains
Oil prices hit $56 per barrel on Monday before easing back slightly. Nymex WTI advanced 23 cents to $55.62 a barrel for June deliveries by midmorning in London. Brent rose 32 cents to $55.29, but at one point it had risen to $55.70.
One factor for the rise in prices is concern that supply will be tight in the U.S. during the summer driving season. Gasoline stockpiles fell last week but are still 5 percent higher than a year ago.
Recent refinery problems in Kansas and Texas have caused concern, as refineries are already operating at near-capacity to meet current demand. Fears are that higher demand during the summer months might go unmet.
This worry was only amplified by the news that a Louisiana refinery owned by Conoco-Phillips would be closed for another week after it failed to restart after being closed for maintenance.
WTI has risen for five days in a row, gaining over $4 per barrel in that time, its largest weekly gain in four months an nearing its all-time high of $58.28 per barrel, reached three weeks ago.
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