Oil hits $104 a barrel
Published March 3, 2008 by CSBJ Staff
The Associated Press
NEW YORK_The surging price of oil reached another milestone today, jumping to an inflation adjusted record high of $103.95 a barrel.
The weaker dollar that has propelled oil and other commodities prices higher sent light, sweet crude for April delivery past $103.76 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. That’s the level many analysts consider to be the true record high for oil, after its $38 barrel price from 1980 is translated into 2008 dollars.
The price later traded up $1.52 at $103.36, fluctuating with the normal ebb and flow of trading.
Oil’s most recent run into record territory has been driven by the greenback’s slump against other world currencies. Crude futures offer a hedge against a falling dollar, and oil futures bought and sold in dollars are more attractive to foreign investors when the dollar is falling.
Gold, copper and wheat are among the other commodities that have rallied in recent weeks as the dollar has fallen.
Filed under CSBJ Daily