KEY POINTS:
LONDON - Brent crude futures rose to US$78 a barrel in early London trading, the first time since last August, on an influx of investment funds and tight North Sea supplies.
Brent prices were within striking distance of the record high of US$78.65, set on August 8, 2006.
US crude for August delivery was US6c higher at US$73.99 a barrel - a fresh 11-month high and getting nearer the record high of US$78.40 set in July 2006.
Analysts and traders said oil prices were likely to creep higher on bullish demand and as political tensions in major producers Iran and Nigeria continued to persist.
"The markets will retain focus on North Sea production problems and refinery outages in the week ahead. These factors will continue to support prices at the current levels," said David Moore, a commodities analyst at Commonwealth Bank of Australia.
Oil has gained more than US$6 in two weeks on a wave of buying by funds during the US summer vacation season, catapulting New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex) crude futures and Brent crude to 11-month highs.
Speculators in the Nymex crude oil market boosted net long positions to a record high in the week ended July 1 in a strong bet prices would rise, the Commodity Future Trading Commission said on Friday
Speculative net long positions in the Nymex heating oil and gasoline markets also rose, hitting their highest levels in years, according to the CFTC data.
- REUTERS
