Crude oil futures rose nearly 2 U.S. dollars a barrel on Friday to close at a new record high of 116.69 dollars a barrel on news about pipeline sabotage in Nigeria.
The front-month contract hit 117 dollars a barrel in electronic trading after markets closed. Crude oil for May delivery gained 1.83 dollars, or 1.6 percent, to settle at 116.69 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
The price of crude oil was pushed higher after a militant group in Nigeria said it had sabotaged a major oil pipeline operated by a Royal Dutch Shell PLC joint venture and promised further attacks on the country's petroleum industry.
A spokeswoman for Shell confirmed that the pipeline was leaking, and said the damage appeared to have been caused by explosives. Nigeria is a major supplier of oil to the United States.
Crude was mostly falling in morning trading as the dollar strengthened, weighing on dollar-denominated oil prices.
Analysts said there was profit-taking in early trading and also the boost in the dollar was having a major impact on prices.
On Thursday, crude futures closed slightly lower after hitting a record of 115.54 dollars a barrel earlier in the session.
Source: Xinhua
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