Singapore, June 23: Oil prices were firmer today in Asian trade after a weekend blast ripped through an Iraqi gas pipeline in what was believed to be an act of sabotage, dealers said. At 11:13 am (0843 IST), New York light sweet crude oil for August delivery was at 29.52 dollars a barrel after closing at 29.48 dollars on Friday.
"Over the weekend something happened to the Iraqi pipeline. The market just reacted, (bringing) prices slightly higher," a dealer with a US oil trading firm said.
However, she said that there are no fundamental reasons for oil prices to rise.
Iraq was due to resume pumping oil destined for export yesterday after a three-month halt due to the US-led war to oust Saddam Hussein.
Tankers began loading from Iraqi reserves stockpiled at the Turkish Mediterranean port of Ceyhan but officials said that pumping through the pipeline to turkey had been delayed.
The oil pipeline between Iraq and Turkey, the main export route from the country's northern fields, was damaged earlier this month in what officials said was an effort to sabotage the country's return to the oil market. Bureau Report