Oil jumps for second day in a row

Oil prices jumped for a second consecutive day yesterday as the supply of crude, for months a secondary consideration to rapidly declining demand, appeared to gain force as a market mover.

Light, sweet crude for April delivery jumped 6.4 per cent, or US$2.72 to settle at US$44.22 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Many analysts believe that the uptick in prices is temporary, and that the severe global economic downturn will depress prices further.

Alaron Trading analyst Phil Flynn said prices could dip again into the US$30 range with inventories near record levels.

In London, Brent prices rose US$1.21 to US$45.50 on the ICE Futures exchange.