NEW YORK (AFP) - Crude oil futures on the New York Mercantile Exchange closed above 48 dollars for the first time in nearly a month, rising 1.59 dollars to 48.35 dollars a barrel.
The surge came after news that US oil inventories tumbled to their lowest levels since February last week in the wake of Hurricane Ivan.
With the latest spike, the futures price moved closer to the all-time record close on August 19 of 48.70 dollars and the intraday record of 49.40 dollars on August 20.
The US Department of Energy said crude reserves fell by 9.1 million barrels in the week to September 17 to 269.5 million barrels, the lowest levels since February 6.
The American Petroleum Institute said its survey showed an even steeper drop of 12.9 million barrels to 266.7 million.
Energy Department officials acknowledged that the inventories were well below normal seasonal levels at a time when demand for heating oil begins to rise.
Hurricane Ivan, on the heels of other major storms in the area, sharply curtailed production in the Gulf of Mexico.
The DoE report also noted that US imports were down 1.5 million barrels last week because the hurricane limited deliveries.