IEA says high oil prices likely to persist

The Associated Press

The world oil market is tight and uncertain, the International Energy Agency said Aug. 11, but it questioned whether soaring prices were justified while supply still exceeds demand.

“Limited spare production capacity combined with security warnings and headline news about Russia, Iraq, Venezuela, China and monthly employment, industry activity and confidence statistics are propelling the market,” the Paris-based agency said in its monthly report.

“The market is tight, production and infrastructure capacity is less than desired and uncertainties continue to weigh on the market,” it added. “But, does this justify US$45 oil? Current oil prices are a concern and are causing economic damage.”

Oil prices remained near record highs Aug. 11. Crude oil for September delivery was at US$44.55 a barrel in after-hours trade Aug. 11 on the New York Mercantile Exchange, easing from the Aug. 10 record of US$45.04 a barrel.

Paris-based IEA, the energy watchdog for wealthy oil-importing countries, said the market is tight, “but the market has been living with greater uncertainties for quite some time now. It has a buffer to cope with potential supply disruptions.”

“Yukos is exporting more than it did this time last year and earlier this year. Supply is running ahead of demand. Saudi Arabia has the ability to raise production in the short term,” its report said.

However, the agency said the trend in the futures markets suggested it was unlikely that prices would decline significantly in the near term: “Relatively high prices throughout the futures strip suggest that current sentiment leans toward expectations for high prices to continue through the winter and into next year.”