SAUDI ARABIA. Saudi Arabia and other OPEC nations including those in West Africa are willing and able to replace any lost Libyan oil, including crude of the same quality, a Saudi Arabian oil official told Bloomberg by telephone today.
Brent North Sea crude, which is more sensitive to Middle East unrest because of Europe's greater dependence on oil from the region, climbed US$1.41 cents to US$112.66 per barrel, its highest since August 2008.
New York's main contract, light sweet crude, gained 93 cents to reach US$98.93 after breaching the US$100 mark late Wednesday.