Oil Dips Below $100 for First Time in 5 Months

Recent posturing has already sent price up 20%

(NEWSER) - Going to war with Iran would be an expensive proposition for America's drivers. Tensions over the country's nuclear ambitions have already pushed crude oil prices up 20% to a record winter high, energy experts tell the New York Times . That's translated to an average $3.73 per gallon at pumps nationwide, with prices well over $4 in California. Summer usually pushes prices around 20 cents higher, but tensions with Iran could tack on an extra 50 cents or more. More»

But warns there's no 'quick fix' to rising gas prices

(NEWSER) - The Obama administration is open to using the strategic petroleum reserve if necessary to deal with rising gas prices, Timothy Geithner said in a CNBC interview, though he didn't sound terribly enthusiastic about the prospect, and warned that there was "no quick fix" to the problem. Gas prices are up 12 cents this week, and indeed shot up 3.5 cents overnight to a national average of $3.65, CNN reports. Geithner attributed that to improved growth expectations in the US, "and also Iran is doing a little saber rattling." More»

Vessel nabbed en route from Bahrain to race in Dubai

(AP) - Iran is holding five British sailors after stopping their racing yacht in the Persian Gulf, the British government said today. The yacht, owned by Sail Bahrain, was stopped on its way from the tiny island country to Dubai on Wednesday when it "may have strayed inadvertently into Iranian waters," according to the Foreign Office. The seizure may be related to recent international pressure on Iran to drop its nuclear program, the AP reports. More»

Prices drop almost 8%; stocks down early on Wall Street

(AP) - A new batch of lousy economic news dragged oil prices down nearly 8% today as signs from across the globe pointed to a prolonged and painful recession. Light, sweet crude for March delivery fell $2.87 to $34.64 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after settling at $37.51 on Friday. Nymex was closed yesterday. More»

(NEWSER) - OPEC has approved a cut in output of 2.2 million barrels of crude a day, the largest reduction ever, MSNBC reports. The consortium believes that stabilizing prices now by decreasing supply will guard against a price spike when consumer confidence increases. OPEC’s monthly report predicts that demand will have fallen 700,000 barrels in 2008, and will decline by twice that amount in 2009. More»