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Oil Prices Jump Despite 'Light' Hurricane Damage

September 27, 2005
The hurricane damage to Gulf of Mexico oil refineries was lighter than expected, but that hasn’t stopped the price of oil from marching higher. Crude oil prices jumped more than $1 a barrel Monday as traders worried that supplies will not meet demand for heating oil in the months ahead.

• Latest Gas Price Round-Up • Oil Prices Fall As Storm Misses Rigs • 'Run Your Car On Water' Scheme Could Leave Consumers All Wet • Unregulated Energy Trading Blamed for Much of Gas Price Gusher • Airlines Join Effort To Limit Oil Speculators • Questions Raised about MyGallons.com • 'Hypermiling' Is Dangerous, Says AAA • Struggling Drivers Blame Washington for High Gas Prices • What’s Really Fueling Those Sky-High Oil Prices • Credit Card Fees at the Pump are a 'Hidden Tax' on Consumers • Survey: 3 Out of 4 Angry About High Gas Prices • $2 A Gallon Gas Possible, Analysts Tell Congress • Speculators Buy More Oil Contracts Than Oil Companies • Saudis to Pump More Oil • Limiting Oil Speculators Gains Ground • Congress To Probe Oil Price Spike • Oil Market 'Saturated,' Iran Claims • Feds See No Relief from High Gas Prices • High Gas Prices Could Mean Lower Insurance Rates • High Gas Prices Good For Kia, Honda • Gas Prices Rip Past $4 and Keep Climbing • Administration, OPEC See Different Causes Of Oil Surge • Feds Probing Possible Oil Market Manipulation • Beware of Fuel Sippers Sipping High-Test • Retailers Respond to High Gas Prices with Discounts, Promotions • Rushing Into a Smaller Car Too Soon May Not Save Money • Hybrid Sales and Prices Climb in Lockstep with Gas Prices • Truckers Bemoan Burden of High Diesel Costs • Gas Prices Biting into Worker Productivity • Consumers Warned About Gas-Saving Schemes • Is Tony Soprano Controlling Gas Prices? • Oil & Gas: The New Bubble • Critics: New Federal Gas Mileage Standard Falls Short • Consumers Feeling Pain of Skyrocketing Gas Prices • New Gas Price Record Forecasts Expensive Summer Driving Season --- • More ...

Traders also bet that gas prices would continue to rise. Gasoline futures rose more than four cents to $2.1292 a gallon, after falling as low as $1.94. Heating oil rose nearly 11 cents to $2.0586 a gallon. Natural gas rose nearly 12 cents to $12.44 per million British thermal unit.

Hurricane Rita delivered only a glancing blow to important oil refineries in Texas, but that doesn’t mean gasoline prices will come down any time soon. In fact, most energy analysts predict motorists will see increases in gas prices in the coming week, though not nearly as large as the post-Katrina spike.The average price a month ago, a few days before hurricane Katrina hit, was $2.60.

Meanwhile, the Department of Energy reports 16 Texas oil refineries remain shut down after the storm, and crews found significant damage to at least one in the Port Arthur area. The outages could lead to petroleum product shortages and further aggravate the heating oil and natural gas markets, which are usually volatile ahead of the winter months.

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