Sydney, June 10: Crude oil fell from a 12-week high in New York on the expectation that Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) won't cut output quotas at a meeting tomorrow due to slow return of Iraqi exports. "There's certainly no urgency for Opec to move," said David Thurtell, commodities strategist at Commonwealth Bank of Australia. "If Iraq comes back sooner and stronger than expected, then OPEC can make a decision at that time."
Iraq, which pumped 2.5 million barrels of oil a day before war, was now pumping about 700,000 barrels a day, he said.
Crude oil for July delivery fell as much as 18 cents, or 0.6 per cent, to 31.27 dollar a barrel in after-hours electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Bureau Report