Analysts: $80/Barrel Crude By December Within Sight

Via Green Car Congress, the likelihood of $80/barrel crude has increased appreciably:

New York Mercantile Exchange data show 6,900 options contracts outstanding that allow buyers to purchase oil for December delivery at $80 a barrel, compared with an average of 77 contracts in January. The probability that oil will top $75 a barrel when the December crude contract expires is 21 percent, according to Adam Sieminski and Michael Lewis, strategists at Deutsche Bank AG, up from 5 percent at the start of the year.

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``We've certainly seen people asking for prices on $100'' contracts, said Orrin Middleton, who markets options and other securities for Barclays Capital in London. ``This was way off people's radars 12 months ago. They now believe there's a possibility, but it's going to take a supply disruption to take us there.''