Oil rose as refineries resumed operations after Atlantic superstorm Sandy dissipated, increasing demand for crude oil.
Futures climbed as much as 1.8 percent as Philadelphia Energy Solutions’ 355,000-barrel-a-day Pennsylvania refinery restored operations. PBF Energy Inc. said two plants on the East Coast operated at reduced rates. Oil also climbed as the dollar weakened against the euro.
Philadelphia Energy’s Pennsylvania refinery “came through the storm without issues,” Cherice Corley, a spokeswoman at the plant, said in an e-mail yesterday.
PBF said Paulsboro, New Jersey, and Delaware City, Delaware, refineries operated at reduced rates overnight. The company said it’s “dealing with various logistical issues.”
Crude oil for December delivery increased to $87.19 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Futures are down 5.6 percent this month and 12 percent this year.
Brent oil for December settlement rose 59 cents to $109.67 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange. The European benchmark’s premium to the West Texas Intermediate contract traded in New York narrowed for a second day.
