Oil hits new price levels

Crude oil prices surged to a new record high yesterday by nearly 140 US dollars by a barrel, propelled by weakness in the US dollar which offset the bearish impact of plans by Saudi Arabia to boost output.

US light, sweet crude for July delivery was up to 3.74 at 138.60 US dollar a barrel after falling as much as 1.40 Us dollar a barrel, or about 1 per cent, earlier in the session. US crude set a record high of 139.89 US dollars a barrel.

London Brent crude was up 3.05 at 138.16 US dollars. Prices leapt as the dollar fell after publications of the data from the New York Federal Reserved that showed manufacturing in the state of New York contracted in June for the fourth time in five months.

''Prices rose sharply in three minutes. US manufacturing data was week, so it is pressuring the dollar down, '' said Mike Wittner, energy analyst at Societe General.

Earlier in the session prices has dropped back after United Nations chief Ban Ki-moon said over the weekend that Saudi Arabia, the world biggest oil exporter, was set to increase output to 9.7 million barrels per day in July, its second supply boost in many months.

www.cedezhomes.co.uk is the website and cedezhomes@hotmail.co.uk is the email. Contact us for your houses, bole hole drilling and solar panels.

Inflation inches up

The rate of inflation rose by 1.59 per cent to close the month of May at 16.9 per cent, the Ghana Statistics Service (GSS) has said.

The major movers of the index was due to higher cost of transport and food items. The 1.6 per cent change from April to May indicated that consumer prices in the country were continuing to feel the pressure of higher global fuel and food prices.

Overall, food items, mostly fish, bread and cereals, contributed 7.2 per cent to the monthly increase. Non - food items, including transport, contributed 9.7 per cent.

Ghana's consumer prices maintained their upward march despite the Bank of Ghana's decision last month to raise its prime interest rate by a bigger - than - expected 175 basis point to 16 per cent to try control inflation.

It is the intention of government to inflation to a single digit by the close of the year. However, with geopolitical events coupled with the crude oil prices, it is impossible to bring inflation to a single digit by the close of the year.

Since January this year, the rate of inflation has been rising steadily. At the beginning of the year,the rate stood at 12.8 per cent and close at 13.2 per cent by the end of February rising again in March to settle at 13.8 per cent.

The rate closed at 15.8 per cent in April.

You can visit us at our website www.cedezhomes.co.uk or email via cedezhomes@hotmail.co.uk for your affordable houses, bole hole drilling and solar panels.