NEW YORK – Oil rose to near $89 per barrel Tuesday on expectations that supplies will be tighter in the wake of Hurricane Irene.
The storm forced several refineries and petroleum terminals to reduce production or shut down altogether. The East Coast may deal with lower fuel supplies in coming weeks, and traders are betting oil and gasoline prices will rise. Meanwhile, another tropical storm — Katia — is strengthening to a hurricane out in the Atlantic and may eventually head toward the U.S.
Nobody wants to sell “when a month from now people will be talking about another monster hurricane,” said Michael Lynch, president of Strategic Energy Economic Research.
Benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude rose $1.63 to finish at $88.90 per barrel in New York. Brent crude jumped $2.14 to end at $114.02 per barrel in London.
“There is clearly a worry about the contribution of some key northeastern refineries,” said Tom
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