Oil Heads for Third Annual Advance in a Row

Oil prices were near flat on Friday in choppy end-year trading while approaching a third straight yearly gain. Europe's debt crisis and slowing Chinese factories thwarted moves higher while geopolitical supply worries were supportive. Light holiday-week trading volumes allowed for sharp price moves and Iran's navy drill in the Strait of Hormuz, along with internal tensions in Iraq, Syria and Nigeria, helped limit losses even after U.S. government data showed crude oil and distillate stocks rose last week. Brent crude is poised to close 2011 at a record-high average of around $111 a barrel, surpassing the previous annual peak of just below $100 reached in 2008. With the exception of 2008, oil prices have closed higher every year for the last decade. Continue reading this article

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