The price of oil has jumped by more than $16 to $120.92 a barrel, the biggest one-day gain on record. There is uncertainty about how the government’s financial bail-out plan will work, causing investors to switch to perceived safe havens such as oil. Others believe that the US government’s bail-out plan will help the economy, increasing demand for oil. Concerns also persist about supply as production in the Gulf of Mexico is still affected by Hurricane Ike. However, analysts said the US rescue package was key. “It has changed sentiment in the oil market,” said analyst Paul Harris from Bank of Ireland. At one point during trading, the price of oil rose by more than $25. The volatility in the price has been exacerbated by the fact that the contract for the supply of oil in October expires on Monday. The contract for oil to be delivered in November was not up as sharply. It rose by $6.62 to $109.37 in New York. Last week oil traded as low as $91 a barrel. It had fallen from the peak of $147 a barrel it reached in July.

Related posts...

• June 22, 2010 -- UK Business Energy Prices: (3)
  A new survey carried out by the Economist Intelligence Unit has revealed that over 80% of British firms expect energy and fuel prices to rise sharply and almost 50% have great concern that the UK coul...
• February 21, 2010 -- Identifying a Half Hour Meter: (0)
  How to find out if you have a half hourly meter – So how do you know if you have a half hour meter?  It’s actually quite straight forward, and all you will need to find this out is a recent copy o...
• February 10, 2010 -- UK Business Gas Prices: (0)
  Business Gas Prices can be difficult to understand, as there are many different types of pricing structures available.  You could simply ring around and obtain gas prices direct from suppliers, but it...
• February 7, 2010 -- Oil Prices Back To $70 Range: (0)
  Oil prices plunged in a busy trading session on Friday, triggering big losses across the commodities markets, as investors went back to buying into the US dollar.  Crude oil prices did have a partial ...
• February 5, 2010 -- CRC Business Lights: (1)
  The era of the 'on-all-night' illuminated high street could end, the Environment Agency is predicting. The agency says new rules will force businesses to switch off lights and displays at night to mee...
• February 3, 2010 -- Bglobal Smart Meter Deal: (3)
  Bglobal Plc said it has signed a new agreement to supply and install smart meters for British Gas Business during 2010. The contract value is anticipated at more than £12 million. In addition, the com...