Hurricane Dennis concerns cause rise in New York

Friday, July 8, 2005 | 9:13 a.m.

Oil rose in New York, heading for its third weekly gain in four, on concern Hurricane Dennis will disrupt petroleum shipments and output in the Gulf of Mexico, where 38 percent of U.S. oil supply is delivered.

Producers including Royal Dutch/Shell Group, BP Plc, Apache Corp. and Transocean Inc. are evacuating workers from platforms as Dennis was upgraded to Category 4, the second strongest, by the National Hurricane Center. Last year oil prices increased at least $10 a barrel in the month after Hurricane Ivan hit.

"The hurricane is a major concern at the moment," said Gerard Burg, a minerals economist at National Australia Bank Ltd. in Melbourne. "If we see similar damage, we could see oil prices breaching $70 a barrel and could approach $80."

Crude oil for August delivery rose as much as 52 cents today to $61.25 a barrel in after-hours electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It was at $61.20 at 3:07 p.m. Tokyo time. Oil is 52 percent higher than a year ago.

Prices in New York fell from a record $62.10 Thursday, in the biggest price swing in 14 years, to close down 0.9 percent after bombings in London killed at least 50 and injured 700.