NIGERIA

Crude oil prices are trading near $76 a barrel and topped $78 on Monday, within sight of the record high hit in August 2006 of $78.65.

Nora Bannerman checks the pristine white uniforms made for American pharmacist Walgreens in her factory in the humid heart of the Ghanaian capital Accra.

Oil prices edged lower on Monday after reaching an 11-month high late last week, as light post-weekend profit-taking was limited by concerns over U.S. fuel supplies, Nigerian crude shipments and North Sea maintenance.

Gold crawled higher on Monday on bullish energy prices and slight falls in the dollar, while Tokyo futures prices rallied to a two-week high.

Oil surged to an 11-month high above $76 a barrel on Friday, closing in on the all-time record as Nigerian disruptions and OPEC output cuts stirred supply concerns amid rising U.S. refiner demand.

Stocks rose on Friday, with all three major Wall Street indexes poised to end the week higher, after rising oil prices lifted energy shares and a stronger-than-expected jobs report indicated strength in the economy.

Oil edged down on Wednesday from a 10-month high above $73 a barrel, though analysts expected the rally to resume due to low U.S. fuel inventories and expectations of strong gasoline demand.

Oil prices rose to 10-month highs above $72 on Monday on expectations that recovering refinery operations in the United States and ongoing supply restrictions will cut into global oil inventories.

Oil eased to around $71 a barrel on Tuesday as investors weighed ample fuel stocks in top consumer the United States and the potential for higher Nigerian crude exports.

Oil prices fell by more than $1 to near $70 on Monday after Royal Dutch Shell said it was preparing to resume exports from a Nigerian oilfield abandoned over a year ago because of militant attacks.

Asian stock markets mostly fell on Monday following a steep slide on Wall Street, but investors bought some Japanese exporters such as Canon Inc. on the back of a downtrodden yen.

Nigerian unions threatened to disrupt power and water supplies on Friday after talks collapsed on the third day of a general strike to protest against a rise in fuel prices.

Oil jumped more than a dollar to top $71 a barrel on Friday on fears a strike by Nigerian unions could intensify and disrupt shipments from the world's eighth-largest exporter.

Oil prices eased further on Thursday, pressured by bulging U.S. crude stockpiles and expectations that a strike in Nigeria would not slow shipments from the eighth largest oil exporter.

A general strike to protest against a rise in fuel prices paralyzed most economic activity in Nigeria for a second day on Thursday, but unions spared vital oil exports.

Oil fell more than $1 a barrel on Wednesday after a U.S. government report showed larger-than-expected increases in crude and gasoline stockpiles in the world's top consumer.

Oil prices eased on Tuesday, pulling back from a 10-month high posted in the previous session on concerns that a strike call in Nigeria could further cut crude output in the world's eighth-biggest oil exporter.

Oil steadied around $71 a barrel on Friday after two days of gains sparked by worries of low fuel supplies from creaking U.S. refineries and an upsurge of violence in the Middle East.

Oil rose above $70 a barrel on Thursday, adding to sharp gains the previous session, on rising tensions in the Middle East and supply concerns in the United States.

Nigeria continues to rank as the riskiest country to do business with over the Internet a new survey released Wednesday shows, with New York identified as the riskiest city in North America.

The United Nations (UN) has called for a review of the country's fuel supply management in Nigeria after an oil pipeline explosion killed at least 260 this Tuesday in Lagos, the commercial capital of the West African nation.