Reply #27: Crude futures set fresh record on supply, Korea concerns @ $75.78 bbl

[UpInArms]

http://www.marketwatch.com/News/Story/BT1ZNhnBN4vDkdmw8bG8tNQ?siteid=mktw&dist=morenews

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Crude-oil futures rose to a record $75.78 a barrel early Friday as traders continued to digest U.S. data showing a bigger-than-expected drawdown in crude inventories while keeping an eye out for news from North Korea and Iran.

Crude for August delivery was last up 62 cents at $75.73 a barrel in electronic trading, after earlier touching a high of $75.78, a record for a front-month contract.

On Thursday, the contract closed just short of the prior day's record finish after a choppy session. Crude prices fell as low as $74.30 immediately after the data were released before recovering almost of their losses by the close.

The latest data were "bullish for crude oil, neutral for gasoline (the build in inventories was offset by strong demand data) and moderately positive for distillates," said Bruce Lanni, analyst at A.G. Edwards, who earlier raised his oil price forecast for 2006.

The Energy Department said crude supplies fell 2.4 million barrels for the week ended June 30, to a total of 341.3 million. It marked the second weekly decline in a row, though supplies were still 3.6% above their year-ago level, according to government data.

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Against this background, gasoline futures were last trading up 0.5 cent at $2.2635 a gallon. Heating oil was up 0.7 cent at $2.069 a gallon and natural gas was up 2 cents at $5.685 per million British thermal units.

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