Oil prices rose above $101 a barrel in Asia on Thursday as concerns loomed that a strike in Nigeria and heightened tension in Iran would threaten global oil supplies, according to AP. Benchmark crude for February delivery rose 61 cents to $101.48 a barrel in late Kuala Lumpur time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell by $1.37 to settle at $100.87 in New York on Wednesday. A Nigerian union representing oil workers in Africa's top crude supplier warned Wednesday they planned to escalate their strike to back protests against an end to fuel subsidies. "The upward move in oil futures is driven by geopolitical supply concerns over Iran and Nigeria, which presents a much more immediate threat to disruption in oil supply," said Victor Shum, an energy analyst with Purvin & Gertz in Singapore. Shum said the supply concerns have offset fears of a recession in Europe and news of a larger-than-expected crude inventory buildup in the U.S. last week, indicating weak demand. In other Nymex trading, heating oil rose 2.7 cents to $3.09 per gallon and gasoline futures added 1.6 cents at $2.78 per gallon. Natural gas futures were down 4.5 cents to $2.73 per 1,000 cubic feet.
