Did the news from Moscow about a U.S. invasion of Iran help...

[whistle]

...trigger the recent surge in oil prices? Here was the quote:

U.S To Attack Iran April 6 ?
by ira
Tue Mar 27, 2007 at 09:04:19 AM PDT
The usually unreliable debka.com writes "Intelligence sources in Moscow claim to have information that a US strike against Iranian nuclear installations has been scheduled for April 6 at 0040 hours. The Russian sources say the US operation, code-named "Bite," will last no more than 12 hours and consist of missile and aerial strikes devastating enough to set Tehran’s nuclear program several years back."

Now here was yesterday's Bloomberg report on oil price increases:

Oil Rises a Seventh Day as U.K.-Iran Standoff Threatens Supply

By Grant Smith

March 28 (Bloomberg) -- Oil rose for a seventh day in New York, climbing close to $65 a barrel, on concern a dispute over Iran's capture of British servicemen would escalate, disrupting supplies from the Middle East.

Oil rose more than $2 a barrel, after surging $5 in seven minutes late yesterday on speculation the U.K. would mount a rescue attempt. U.S. stockpiles of gasoline were already falling before the standoff between Britain and Iran, and analysts expect the Department of Energy to report today they fell again last week, the seventh straight decline.

``It shows how nervous and twitchy people are about the situation in Iran,'' said Michael Davies, an analyst at the commodity broker Sucden (U.K.) Ltd. in London. ``Military strikes are a possibility, although it's a long way off, if tensions keep rising. You can guarantee more people will take outright bets on prices rising if this continues.''

Crude oil for May delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange jumped as much as $2.03 or 3.2 percent to $64.96 a barrel as the U.K. froze all other contacts with Iran to focus on the dispute. Oil climbed past $68 yesterday to its highest intraday price since Sept. 6. Oil prices have gained 10 percent the past two weeks.

The New York-traded contract rose $1.75 to $64.68 at 1:15 p.m. London time. Brent crude oil traded 2.5 percent higher at $66.20 on London's ICE Futures exchange.
<more>

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=a6XVgtZJd3zk&refer=home

<snip>
Oil eases, Iran and gasoline worries support
Reuters
Published: Friday, March 30, 2007
LONDON -- Oil stalled Friday after a nearly two-week rally on tensions over Iran’s capture of British military personnel and worries over U.S. gasoline supplies ahead of summer driving season.

U.S. crude last traded down 8 cents to US$65.95 a barrel, after rising 3 percent to a six-month closing high the previous session. Prices have risen nearly 12 percent since March 19.

London Brent, meanwhile, rose 33 cents to US$68.21 a barrel. Earlier in the session, the European benchmark rose briefly above $69 for the first time since September 2006.
<more>

http://www.canada.com/nationalpost/financialpost/story.html?id=fc7ca063-75e7-46ce-a4ee-f5c16c1b3a48&k=34331

[ProdigalJunkMail]

1. oil jumped for a few reasons...

one of the major reasons is the fears generated by Iran taking the British soldiers...fears of escallation and instability (more than current) in the region boosted prices. The 'news' of a pending US invasion is suspect, at best.

sP