Oil Tops $62 a Barrel After Nigeria Attack

New York crude oil prices closed above $62 a barrel Tuesday after a militant group attacked three pipelines in Nigeria, Africa’s biggest crude producer.

Light, sweet crude for June delivery gained 79 cents, or 1.29 percent, to $62.26 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The attack by the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta shut down the pipelines and an export terminal operated by Italian multinational oil and gas company Eni SpA in Nigeria’s southern Bayelsa state.

The movement — which kidnapped six Chevron Corp. employees a week ago — claims to fight against the exploitation and oppression of the Niger Delta people and the degradation of their natural environment by foreign multinational corporations involved in oil extraction.

June natural gas lost 14 cents, or 1.83 percent, to $7.64 per 1,000 cubic feet. June heating oil gained 2.7 cents, or 1.5 percent, to $1.8299 a gallon.

Reformulated gasoline blendstock for oxygen blending added 1.49 cent, or 0.68 percent, to $2.2045 a gallon.

AAA said Tuesday the average U.S. retail regular unleaded gasoline price was $3.036 a gallon, up 0.1 cent from Monday’s $3.035 a gallon.