Oil price fall 'only temporary'

23 November 2007

Crude oil prices continued to fall on Thursday, but one market expert still expects to see the $100 (£48.40) a barrel barrier broken in the near future.

The New York exchange was closed for the Thanksgiving holiday, but electronic trading saw US crude lose 75 cents to slip to $96.54 a barrel, while in London the price of Brent crude dropped 34 cents to $94.50.

However, Harry Tchilinguirian of BNP Paribas told Bloomberg the slight downward movement is likely to be only temporary.

"Where it matters most for oil demand growth is emerging markets, and their outlook is strong, so nothing prevents us moving above $100," the analyst explained.

Mr Tchilinguirian added that the fact stockpiles of oil products are falling ahead of the peak demand of the northern hemisphere winter means that prices could reach $110 a barrel.

Meanwhile, the Economist Intelligence Unit has increased its prediction for the average price of Brent crude during 2008 from $69.50 to $78 a barrel. The final average figure for 2007 is expected to be $73.30.