Oil prices rise even as Ivan fears dissipate

WASHINGTON — Oil prices rose Thursday despite reports that refineries along the Gulf Coast, as well as production platforms in the Gulf of Mexico, that had been shut down were slowly being restaffed, as Hurricane Ivan proved to be less disruptive than feared.

“We’ve really not heard of any refineries in that area reporting any problems,” and several are already being restarted, said Tom Bentz, a trader at BNP Paribas Futures in New York.

More time was still needed to assess the impact on production platforms, and some refiners said logistical constraints had slowed their ability to restart operations.

A tropical storm, Jeanne, strengthened into a Hurricane on Thursday, striking the Dominican Republic, and that left Bentz and other traders with a tinge of cautiousness about the market’s direction in the week ahead.

Other events that might have contributed to the rise in prices were a pipeline explosion in northern Iraq and an explosion on an oil tanker unloading in northeastern Siberia.