Oil prices race above $122 a barrel
Crude oil futures shot well past the previous day’s record as traders pounced on a prediction by Goldman Sachs that prices could rise to $150 to $200 within two years. A weakening dollar and rising worries about falling production in Mexico and Russia also pushed prices higher, analysts said.
Light, sweet crude for June delivery jumped to a new record of $122.73 a barrel before settling up $1.87 at $121.84 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Goldman Sachs analyst Arjun Murti said global oil prices are in the middle of a “super spike” — a prediction he first articulated three years ago — although he added that it is unclear how far prices could rise.
Separately, the U.S. government again raised its short-term price forecasts for crude oil and gasoline. The Energy Department now expects average monthly gasoline prices should peak at $3.73 a gallon in June, while regular-grade gasoline is expected to average $3.52 a gallon this year.
At the pump, the national average price of a gallon of regular gas slipped 0.1 cent overnight to $3.61, according to AAA and the Oil Price Information Service.
June gasoline futures rose 5.26 cents to settle at $3.1055 a gallon after earlier setting a new trading record of $3.126. June heating oil futures rose 4.7 cents to settle at $3.3535 a gallon after rising to their own trading record of $3.3712. June natural gas futures fell 2.8 cents to settle at $11.15 per 1,000 cubic feet.
