* Brent crude nears $120 a barrel as Libya output falls
* Oil leaps, specter of inflation spooks markets
* Swiss franc hits record high as US dollar falls broadly
(Updates equity market prices)
By Herbert Lash
NEW YORK, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Crude oil prices soared to
almost $120 a barrel and the safe-haven Swiss franc hit a
record high on Thursday as the turmoil in Libya kept markets
tense, but gold and Wall Street even edged higher.
The escalating violence in Libya, home to Africa's largest
proven oil reserves, lifted benchmark Brent crude oil to its
highest price since August 2008 and kindled investor fears of
an inflationary spike that might slow global economic growth.
For details see: []
This week's relentless surge in oil prices stung the U.S.
dollar against major currencies, boosting the Swiss franc and
to a lesser extent the Japanese yen, currencies that often
benefit during times of uncertainty. []
Copper, considered a harbinger of economic sentiment, fell
to one-month lows but gold steadied near seven-week highs as
investor fears over oil-induced inflation were partially offset
by pockets of profit-taking. []
Brent crude futures for April delivery <LCOc1> spiked to
$119.79 a barrel before easing to $113.85, up $2.60 on the
day.
U.S. light sweet crude oil <CLc1> also rose but remained
under the $100 mark it touched on Wednesday for the first time
since October 2008.
Spot gold prices <XAU=> rose slightly to $1,411.50 an
ounce, up just $1.59.
"The focus is on the Middle East and oil prices. Everybody
and his mother has upgraded their forecasts on oil prices, with
one even forecasting oil to hit $200 per barrel," said Ron
Simpson, director currency research at Action Economics in
Tampa, Florida.
Forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi launched a counter-attack
but rebels threatened the Libyan leader's grip on power by
seizing important towns close to the capital and bringing the
tide of rebellion ever closer to his power base.
[]
Disruption to Libya's output has cut at least 400,000
barrels per day of the country's 1.6 million barrels per day
production, Reuters calculations show. []
Italian oil company ENI said the decline was greater,
estimating 1.2 million barrels of oil had been removed from the
market.
The Nasdaq and benchmark S&P 500 traded up a bit after two
days of sharp declines on Wall Street.
The Dow Jones industrial average <> was down 1.25
points, or 0.01 percent, at 12,104.53. The Standard & Poor's
500 Index <.SPX> was up 0.73 points, or 0.06 percent, at
1,308.13. The Nasdaq Composite Index <> was up 15.41
points, or 0.57 percent, at 2,738.40.
U.S. Treasury debt prices rose on continued support from
safe-haven buying as some analysts forecast yields to fall even
lower in the near term. The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury
note <US10YT=RR> was up 11/32 in price to yield 3.44 percent.
[]
The Swiss franc <CHF=EBS> gained for the eighth of the last
nine sessions against the dollar, which fell to a record low of
0.9240 on electronic trading platform EBS.
The euro <EUR=> was up 0.34 percent at $1.3793. Against the
yen, the dollar <JPY=> was down 0.87 percent at 81.77.
(Additional reporting by Gertrude Chavez-Dreyfuss in New York;
Amanda Cooper, Naomi Tajitsu, Christopher Johnson, Harpreet
Bhal in London; Writing by Herbert Lash, Editing by Chizu
Nomiyama)
