GV: Oil slides to $104 as rebels take Libyan ports
NEW YORK — Oil prices are sliding after Libyan rebels recaptured oil ports and promised to resume exports. Much of Libya's oil exports go to Europe.
Benchmark crude had jumped 24 percent since mid- February as fighting in Libya squeezed off oil shipments that previously supplied nearly 2 percent of the world's oil.
How quickly the rebels could resume exports is unclear, as is who would risk buying the oil. The news was still enough to drop oil by $1.38 to $104.04 per barrel in morning trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. In London, Brent crude fell 90 cents to $114.52 per barrel on the ICE Futures Exchange.
Meanwhile, retail gasoline prices continue to set records. The national average hit $3.584 per gallon overnight, and it's nearly $4.03 per gallon in California.
