NEW YORK — Oil prices broke through the $70-a-barrel mark Friday, and forecasters are broadening expectations for an upward swing in crude.
Benchmark crude for July delivery lost 37 cents to settle at $68.44 on the New York Mercantile Exchange, finishing the week with a gain of nearly $2 a barrel. Earlier in the day, oil jumped as high as $70.32 per barrel, its highest since October.
Oil prices have been soaring for months despite a massive surplus of petroleum and natural gas. A large amount of speculative money has flowed into the markets, potentially taking advantage of a weak U.S. currency.
Gas prices added another 2 cents overnight, climbing to their highest level nationally in more than seven months to $2.592 a gallon, according to auto club AAA, Wright Express and Oil Price Information Service. A gallon of gas costs 48.2 cents more than it did a month ago, but it’s $1.397 cheaper than last year.
In Denver, prices climbed to $2.446, up 1.1 cents from Thursday and 40.8 cents from a month ago.
“It hurts discretional spending,” said Tom Kloza, publisher and chief oil analyst at Oil Price Information Service. “It leads people to think about not taking those summer vacations.”
