U.S. Crude Oil Gains on Houston Channel Trouble

U.S. Crude Oil Gains on Houston Channel Trouble

Oil rose on Monday after weather conditions closed the Houston Ship Channel and fears of a U.S. recession continued.

The U.S. Coast Guard reported dense fog today, delaying forty shipments from traveling through the Houston Ship Channel which allows transportation to the biggest petroleum port in the country. That port has five refineries that process 1.34 million of barrels a day.

U.S. crude for delivery in March gained $1.15, or 1.02 percent to $89.98 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange at 2:07 p.m. Brent Crude traded on London's ICE Futures Exchange rose 4$1.21, or 1.35 percent to $90.98 a barrel at 2:39 p.m.

Crude prices are recovering from a decline of nearly $3 last Friday after a report from the Labor Department showed the first loss in jobs in four years with 17,000 employments cut in January. The signal increased worries of an economic recession and President Bush showed concerns on the report.

In addition, Turkish attacks on the north part of Iraq were reported on Monday. Iraq is responsible for 3 percent of oil's world production.