NEW YORK (AP) — Oil prices plunged Friday after Libya’s foreign minister declared a cease-fire and said the government would stop military operations against rebels.
Foreign Minister Moussa Koussa announced the cease-fire Friday, shortly after the U.N. voted to authorize a no-fly zone and “all necessary measures,” including airstrikes, to protect Libyan citizens from forces loyal to Moammar Gadhafi.
Koussa said the cease-fire “will take the country back to safety” and ensure security for all Libyans.
Benchmark crude swiftly dropped afterward on the New York Mercantile Exchange, with the price plunging about $3 in 15 minutes, or nearly 3 percent. West Texas Intermediate oil for April delivery fell 57 cents to $101.85 in morning trading on the Nymex.
Oil prices surged as much as 27 percent in the past month as pro-reform uprisings swept through North Africa and the Middle East, ousting leaders in Tunisia and Egypt. The region is home to OPEC leaders Saudi Arabia and Iran, and it produces 27 percent of the world’s oil. Prices rose on concerns unrest could disrupt global oil supplies.
The rise in oil prices was felt at gasoline stations across the U.S., where pump prices jumped and remain at the highest levels ever for this time of year at $3.54 per gallon.
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