LONDON, Feb 1- Spot Brent prices are at their highest level since October and almost $16 above Saudi Arabia's theoretical target of around $100 per barrel. "Current high oil prices are a major challenge... for the global economic recovery," the International Energy Agency's chief economist Fatih Birol warned on Thursday.
The spread had narrowed earlier this month with the start up of the expanded Cushing to Texas Seaway pipeline, which had been expected to to draw down Midwest inventories bulging from rising North American production.
SEOUL, Feb 1- U.S. crude oil futures steadied on Friday, giving up early gains, after China's official factory activity gauge missed market expectations.
*Benchmark index rises most in six months in January. NEW YORK, Jan 31- Commodities handed back some of the previous day's gains on Thursday, but stronger crude oil, corn and cotton prices in January pushed the complex to its best monthly performance in six months in January.
NEW YORK, Jan 31- Brent crude oil futures rose to three-month highs on Thursday, widening its premium over U.S. crude, concerns about rising crude stockpiles in the U.S. Traders cited concerns about stockpiles at the Cushing, Oklahoma delivery point for the U.S. contract, which have pushed to record highs.
NEW YORK, Jan 31- Brent crude oil prices edged higher on Thursday, briefly touching a three-month high, as traders weighed mixed economic data from the United States and Europe. The international benchmark rose to $115.25 a barrel, the highest level since mid-October, before retreating as U.S. crude and gasoline futures sank.
"I wouldn't read too much into it," said Carsten Fritsch, an oil analyst at Commerzbank in Frankfurt, adding he expected oil prices to make further gains this week. Brent slipped 23 cents to $114.67 a barrel by 1452 GMT, after earlier hitting $115.25, the highest since Oct. 16.
LONDON, Jan 31- North Sea Forties oil exports to South Korea, a specialised trade that has supported crude prices, may drop in coming weeks due to maintenance at refineries, potentially weakening a source of support for Brent oil prices.
SINGAPORE, Jan 31- Brent crude hovered near $115 per barrel on Thursday, not far from a more than three-month high, as the U.S. So better news out of China and expectations for recovery in the United States caused risk money to come back into equities, commodities and energy, "said Tony Nunan, an oil risk manager at Mitsubishi.
SINGAPORE, Jan 31- Brent crude edged up to a more than three-month high above $115 per barrel on Thursday, as the U.S. So better news out of China and expectations for recovery in the United States caused risk money to come back into equities, commodities and energy, "said Tony Nunan, an oil risk manager at Mitsubishi.
SINGAPORE, Jan 31- Brent crude edged up to a more than three-month high above $115 per barrel on Thursday, as the U.S. So better news out of China and expectations for recovery in the United States caused risk money to come back into equities, commodities and energy, "said Tony Nunan, an oil risk manager at Mitsubishi.
TOKYO, Jan 31- U.S. crude futures rose for a fourth day on Thursday to above $98 a barrel, holding near a four-and-a-half month high hit a day earlier, supported by better-than-expected European economic data that improved the outlook for global fuel demand.
*Brent crude hits highest since Oct 16. NEW YORK, Jan 30- Commodities rallied on Wednesday, with oil, corn and soybean prices hitting multi-week highs, propelled by encouraging economic data from Europe, a weak dollar and concerns about tighter supplies of raw materials. Federal Reserve to maintain its monthly $85 billion bond-buying stimulus plan.
LONDON, Jan 30- Brent crude oil hit a three-month high on Wednesday, reaching $115 a barrel after better-than-forecast European data spurred optimism over the global economy, despite disappointing U.S. economic growth figures. Brent crude oil futures were 35 cents higher at $114.71 a barrel by 1623 GMT after hitting $115.24, their highest since Oct. 16, 2012.
LONDON, Jan 30- Brent crude oil reached its highest level in three and a half months on Wednesday, passing $115 a barrel after better-than-forecast European data spurred optimism for the global economy. Brent crude oil futures were 20 cents higher at $114.56 a barrel by 1425 GMT after hitting $115.24, their highest since Oct. 16, 2012.