NEW YORK — Oil futures rallied to a record of more than $88 a barrel Tuesday on concerns about disruptions to Middle East crude supplies and a growing view that domestic supplies aren’t sufficient to meet fourth-quarter demand.
Traders fear that a Turkish incursion into Iraq in search of rebels could disrupt crude supplies from northern Iraq.
“Whenever there is any escalation in political tensions in the Middle East, oil markets become concerned,” said David Moore, a commodity strategist at Commonwealth Bank of Australia in Sydney. “There are pipelines that people worry may be affected if there are any issues in Iraq.”
The Middle East tensions add to supply concerns stoked in recent days by reports from the Energy Department, the International Energy Agency and the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries suggesting that oil supplies are flat or falling as demand is growing.
Light, sweet crude for November delivery rose $1.48 to settle at a record $87.61 a barrel. Earlier, prices rose as high as $88.20, a trading record.
