Oil rose on Friday as cold weather hit the giant US Northeast heating oil market and the dollar recovered from fresh lows. US light crude oil rose 89 cents at $98.18 a barrel - the highest settlement on record - but below the all-time intraday high of $99.29 a barrel hit on Wednesday.
London Brent crude gained $1.26 to $95.76. Gains came as the dollar rebounded from fresh lows against the euro earlier Friday after comments from eurozone policymaker. Concerns of a supply shortfall ahead of the Northern Hemisphere winter have also supported prices in their nearly 45 percent rise to near $100 a barrel since mid-August.
US heating oil prices hit a fresh record on Friday as colder weather hit the US Northeast, the world's biggest heating oil market, helping push crude higher. "Strength in middle distillates, such as heating oil and aviation fuel, as well as gasoline, is showing up today," said Andy Lebow, broker at MF Global in New York.
Oil had fallen earlier on signs of higher Opec shipments in early December. Opec oil exports, excluding Angola, will rise by 720,000 barrels per day (bpd) in the four weeks to December 8, according to Roy Mason of tanker tracker Oil Movements.
The increase will be the biggest this year, with most of the extra supply heading to Western refiners. Mason estimated that seaborne exports from the 11 Opec countries would rise to 24.54 million bpd from 23.82 million bpd to November 10.
In a separate report, industry consultant Petrologistics said Opec oil output was would rise 350,000 barrels per day in November because of a strong recovery in supplies from Iraq. The 12 Opec members are forecast to supply 31.6 million bpd this month, up from a revised 31.25 million bpd in October, said Petrologistics, which tracks tanker shipments.
Opec ministers are due to meet in Abu Dhabi on December 5 and discuss raising output, although many members have said more crude would be unlikely to tame a rally fuelled by speculation and political tension.
"The Opec question is an open one. We may see Opec increasing production but there is no certainty. The oil market remained fundamentally tight," said David Moore, a commodity strategist at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia in Sydney.
Traders said they expected the market to attempt a fresh assault at $100. "I do think they will try to get it there before the Opec meeting," said Rob Laughlin at MF Global. "Whether it's going to be able to do it without all markets open, I think not. It's more on the agenda for next week."
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