Oil prices remain high

Oil prices remain high

SINGAPORE (Reuters): Crude prices in Asia on Thursday were
holding overnight highs, underpinned by reports of lower oil
stocks in the United States.

New York Mercantile Exchange September U.S. crude futures
trading on the electronic ACCESS system in Asia were last traded
at an intraday high of $21.53 per barrel at 0620 GMT, just above
New York's close of $21.52, the highest settlement price since
October 10, 1997.

On Wednesday, crude futures in London and New York traded at
22-month highs, boosted by the stock data and a perception that
the supply curbs would erase the glut entirely in coming months.

Paris-based International Energy Agency in a monthly report
released earlier this week said OPEC's compliance with its
pledged cuts rose to 91 percent in July from 87 percent in June.

But BP Amoco's Chief Executive John Browne said, after the
release of the group's second quarter results on Tuesday, that
while the output restraint had eaten into supplies, stocks were
still running above a four-year trend.