Business news with words department+jump+prices. 17 news.

CRUDE oil futures jumped yesterday on supply concerns, stoked by a new round of Turkish airstrikes in northern Iraq and a growing belief that US oil inventories fell last week. Turkey's military said its warplanes bombed eight suspected Kurdish rebel positions in northern Iraq on Wednesday. It was the third Turkish strike inside Iraq in less than two weeks. Iraq produced 2.32 million barrels of oil a day in November, according to the International Energy Agency, or about 2.7 percent of the world's oil supply. As much as 400,000 barrels a day is exported north across Iraq's border with Turkey, and the air assaults raise the risk of retaliatory strikes against oil infrastructure, analysts said. "People are nervous about a possible disruption of supply on some important pipelines" in the area, Mike Fitzpatrick, an analyst at MF Global in New York, told Dow Jones Newswires. The new attacks came as oil investors awaited inventory data from the Energy Department's

STOCKS sold off yesterday after a jump in consumer inflation raised concerns about how much freedom the Federal Reserve has to continue cutting interest rates. The Dow Jones industrial average gave up more than 178 points. The Labor Department said the consumer price index rose 0.8 percent in November amid a spike in gasoline prices. The report also found large increases in the cost of clothing, airline tickets and prescription drugs. The report raises questions about the Fed's options for priming the economy. The Fed this week lowered interest rates and announced a plan to align with other key central banks and offer loans to pressed lenders around the world. But while it wants to stimulate the U.S. economy and make lending easier among banks wary of faltering debt, the Fed also has to keep a watchful eye on inflation. Robert Dye, senior economist at PNC Financial Services Group, said the economic readings this week painted a mixed picture for investors, spurring some of the

Higher gas prices sent U.S. consumer inflation in November to its biggest jump since September 2005, the U.S. Labour Department said Friday.

STOCKS finished mixed in another volatile session yesterday after a spike in wholesale prices touched off inflation concerns and partially overshadowed a strong increase in retail sales last month. Despite the uneven economic news, a strong forecast by Honeywell International Inc propped up the Dow Jones industrial average. Wall Street, which has this week paid close attention to steps by the Federal Reserve to stoke greater movement in moribund credit markets, again looked to fresh economic data for signals about the health of the economy. In one unwelcome development, prices at the wholesale level jumped 3.2 percent in November -- their biggest increase in 34 years -- after a steep rise in wholesale gasoline prices. The news wasn't all bad, however. The Commerce Department said retail sales rose in November by the largest amount in six months, and a Labor Department report showed a drop in new claims filed by those seeking jobless benefits. The modest movement on Wall

RETAIL sales in the United States increased twice as much as forecast in November, easing concern near-record fuel prices and falling home values would trip up consumers. The 1.2-percent rise, the biggest since May, followed a 0.2-percent gain the prior month, the Commerce Department said yesterday in Washington. Purchases excluding automobiles jumped 1.8 percent, the most since January 2006.

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- U.S. retail sales rose sharply in November, pushed higher by rising gasoline prices, the Commerce Department reported Thursday.

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - U.S. retail sales rose a better-than-expected 1.2% in November, the best gain in six months, the Commerce Department estimated Thursday. The sales gains were widespread across most kinds of retail outlets, including gasoline, department stores and hardware stores. Auto sales were the only major source of weakness, falling 1%. The consensus forecast of Wall Street economists was for retail sales to rise 0.7%. Excluding autos, sales rose 1.8%. Wall Street had expected a increase of 0.7%. Higher prices at the pump contributed to the November sales gain. Excluding gasoline, sales increased 0.6%.

OIL futures fell yesterday to their lowest level in six weeks after a mixed government inventory report failed to offset a belief that supplies are growing faster than demand. Investors shrugged off OPEC's decision to keep production levels steady, a possible sign prices have peaked for the year, analysts said. In its weekly inventory report, the Energy Department's Energy Information Administration said crude supplies plunged by 8 million barrels last week, much more than the expected 700,000 barrel decline. That caused oil prices to jump briefly above US$90 a barrel. But other aspects of the report weighed on prices as the day wore on. Crude supplies grew at the closely-watching Nymex delivery terminal in Cushing, Oklahoma. Inventories of heating oil rose when analysts had expected a decline, and gasoline supplies rose more than expected. "Overall, this is a mixed report," said Tim Evans, an analyst at Citigroup Inc, in a research note. Earlier yesterday,

ENERGY futures fell yesterday after the government reported unexpected increases in crude oil and gasoline inventories last week and OPEC forecast fourth-quarter demand for oil would be less than expected. In its weekly inventory report, the Energy Department's Energy Information Administration said oil inventories rose by 2.8 million barrels during the week ended November 9. Analysts surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires, on average, had expected a decline of 300,000 barrels. That helped send light, sweet crude for December delivery falling 66 US cents to settle at US$93.43 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after trading off more than US$2 a barrel earlier. Crude prices have been volatile this week, falling more than US$3 on Tuesday and rising more than US$2 on Wednesday after hitting a record of US$98.62 one week ago. The drop in crude was limited, however, by an unexpectedly large drop in heating oil supplies, a mixed report on Iran's compliance with UN demands over

WASHINGTON Consumer inflation posted another elevated reading in October as energy prices shot up by the fastest pace in five months. The Labor Department reported Thursday that its Consumer Price Index rose by 0.3 percent last month, the second straight month with inflation at that level. The acceleration was occurring because of another jump in energy prices and continued increases in food costs. Meanwhile, the government said that the number of laid off workers filing claims for unemployment benefits rose by 20,000 last week to 339,000, the highest level in four weeks.

The U.S. Energy Department expects gasoline prices to climb an additional 20 cents a gallon by December.

PETROLEUM futures rose sharply yesterday and oil prices passed US$83 a barrel after the US government reported an unexpected decline in crude oil inventories. Prices were also supported by an International Energy Agency report that concluded oil inventories held by the world's largest industrialized countries have fallen below a five-year average, and by concerns that clashes between Turkish forces and Kurdish rebels could affect Iraqi oil supplies. "No news was bearish today," said James Cordier, president of Liberty Trading Group in Florida. "Really, that's all investors need right now to push energy prices higher." The weekly inventory report from the US Energy Department's Energy Information Administration said crude supplies fell by 1.7 million barrels in the week ended October 5. Analysts surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires on average expected oil inventories to rise by 1 million barrels. While the report also concluded that refinery activity and

THE US trade deficit narrowed more than forecast in August as exports climbed to a record for a sixth consecutive month. The gap shrank 2.4 percent to US$57.6 billion, the smallest since January, from a revised US$59 billion in July, the Commerce Department said yesterday in Washington. Foreign companies, benefiting from growing demand and a weaker dollar that's made American goods less expensive, have been snapping up Boeing Co aircraft and General Electric Co turbines. Rising exports will help keep the economy from falling into recession even as the housing slump persists. "The dollar is continuing to decline, which is giving a huge boost to competitiveness," Nigel Gault, chief US economist at Global Insight Inc in Lexington, Massachusetts, said before the report. Economists had forecast the deficit would narrow to US$59 billion, from a previously reported US$59.2 billion in July, according to the median of 74 forecasts in a Bloomberg News survey. Prices of goods

OIL futures rose sharply yesterday after the government predicted that a colder winter ahead will help lift worldwide demand for crude during the fourth quarter. In a monthly report, the Energy Department's Energy Information Administration estimated that global demand for oil will be 1.8 million barrels a day higher in the fourth quarter than it was during the same period last year. The report follows a prediction Thursday from the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that temperatures in the US will be 1.3 percent colder than last year, although they'll be 2.8 percent warmer than average. "Initially, traders are relying on the Energy Information Administration (report)," said Tim Evans, an analyst with Citigroup Inc. in New York. However, Evans also said of Tuesday's trading, "I think there may (also) be a technical element to this." Oil prices declined more than US$2 a barrel on Monday, and have been volatile in recent days. Analysts say investors are engaged in a battle over whether oil supplies are adequate to meet fourth quarter demand. Some investors feel prices have peaked for the year and are due to begin a seasonal decline, while others feel prices could rise again and set new records. When prices held above US$78 on Monday, that may have emboldened some of the more bullish investors to try to push prices to new highs, Evans said. Light, sweet crude for November delivery rose US$1.24 to settle at US$80.26 a barrel Tuesday on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while gasoline futures rose 2 cents to settle at US$2.0202 a gallon. November heating oil rose 2.57 cents to settle at US$2.1853 a gallon, while natural gas for November rose 1.7 cents to US$6.863 per 1,000 cubic feet. In London, November Brent crude rose 91 cents to settle at US$77.49 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange. At the pump, meanwhile, gas prices slipped 0.2 cent overnight to a national average of US$2.765 a gallon, according to AAA and the Oil Price Information Service. Retail prices have slid in recent weeks as consumer demand for gasoline has fallen. In addition to reacting to Tuesday's EIA predictions about future demand, traders are anticipating Thursday's EIA report on petroleum inventories. Crude oil inventories are expected to have gained 1 million barrels in the week ended Oct. 5, according to a Dow Jones Newswires survey of analysts, while refinery use is expected to have fallen by 0.1 percentage point to

THE widening gap between crude oil and the relatively low price of gasoline is signaling the first quarterly decline in oil prices in a year. While oil has fallen in the fourth quarter during 13 of the past 20 years because of the transition from peak summer demand, the pressure for another drop in the months ahead is the most intense since 2004 and may defer any rebound to record crude prices until the first half of 2008. Citigroup Inc, Deutsche Bank AG and HSBC Holdings Plc anticipate that oil will slide from last month's record US$83.90 a barrel as gasoline sales weaken to the lowest level this year and a slowing US economy curbs demand. Profits from making fuels are so low that refiners have 12.5 percent of capacity off line, the second-highest rate of the past two decades for this time of year, data from the US Department of Energy show. "Refinery profit margins are being squeezed at a time when significant maintenance is scheduled," said Tim Evans, an energy analyst with Citigroup Global Markets Inc in New York. "The combination of these factors should send crude oil lower." Oil traders and analysts have never been more pessimistic, with 75 percent of respondents anticipating prices will fall, according to a weekly survey by Bloomberg News that started in April 2004. Crude may end the year below US$70 a barrel, compared with US$81.66 at the end of the third quarter, according to a forecast by Adam Sieminski, a global oil analyst at Deutsche Bank in New York. If he's right, a US$1 million investment in crude oil futures in New York would more than double to US$2.3 million, assuming speculators used the exchange's minimum deposit to conduct the transaction. Not everyone forecasts that oil will move lower by the end of the year. Goldman Sachs Group Inc is the most bullish commodities trading firm on oil, forecasting on September 17 that crude will end the year at US$85 a barrel, with a "high risk" of a jump above US$90, according to a report from analysts including Jeffrey Currie in London. Its two current trading recommendations on oil are both money-losers. One of them was to buy the gasoline refining margin, which has lost more than half its value since then, Goldman's research shows.

OIL prices rose for the first time in four sessions yesterday as investors questioned whether supplies of crude, gasoline and heating oil are adequate to meet demand. With heating season about to begin, investors are betting demand for crude oil will jump as refineries start producing more heating oil. And refineries that are focused on heating oil will be turning out less gasoline. The Energy Department on Wednesday reported that crude inventories rose by 1.2 million barrels last week, while supplies of distillates including heating oil fell by 1.2 million barrels. Gasoline supplies fell by 100,000 barrels. Traders view that increase in crude supplies as inadequate, said James Cordier, president of Liberty Trading Group in Tampa, Florida. "That's nothing," Cordier said. "We expect to see figures of 3 (million) and 5 (million) barrels." Light, sweet crude for November delivery rose US$1.50 to settle at US$81.44 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after falling more than US$1 earlier. Crude's uncertain direction early in the day reflected a battle between investors betting that demand will tighten, and those who feel oil has peaked and begun a seasonal decline. "This market is going to break seasonally or the global economy is going to find (oil prices are) a bargain," Cordier said. Oil prices also drew support from heating oil and gasoline futures. Nymex heating oil rose 5.26 cents to settle at US$2.2313 a gallon, while November gasoline rose 5.63 cents to settle at US$2.0522 a gallon. Prices of both were supported by the inventory declines and several minor refinery outages on the West Coast. November natural gas rose 13.5 cents to settle at US$7.412 per 1,000 cubic feet. The Energy Department reported that natural gas inventories rose by 57 billion cubic feet last week, less than the 65 billion-cubic-foot increase analysts forecast. Some analysts said a smattering of weather systems strung from the Gulf of Mexico to the central Atlantic were supporting natural gas prices, though none of the storms are expected to develop quickly into subtropical or tropical storms and threaten critical gas and oil infrastructure in the Gulf. In London, November Brent crude rose US$1.78 to settle at US$78.97 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange. Some analysts think this year's record gas prices are affecting demand, which fell last week. But prices will remain high if supplies continue falling. In the

CONSUMER spending in the US rose more than forecast in August, a sign the fallout from a weaker job market and collapse in subprime lending has yet to reach the biggest part of the economy. The 0.6-percent rise in spending was the biggest in four months and followed a 0.4-percent increase in July, the Commerce Department said yesterday in Washington. The Federal Reserve's preferred measure of inflation cooled. Lower gasoline prices, auto-dealer discounts and a jump in air-conditioning use during last month's hot spell lifted demand, economists said. Smaller price increases give Fed policy makers room to reduce interest rates again should job losses and declines in home values lead to a deeper slowdown. "The third quarter should look good for consumer spending but that may be the high-water mark," Jonathan Basile, an economist at Credit Suisse Holdings in New York, said before the report. "We're seeing job growth moderate and housing becoming a bigger drag and that will continue to pour downward pressure on spending." US Treasury securities held earlier gains following the report. The yield on the benchmark 10-year note was at 4.54 percent at 8:35am in New York, from 4.57 percent late yesterday. Stock index futures trimmed losses. Incomes increased 0.3 percent in August after 0.5 percent, yesterday's report also showed. Income was forecast to rise 0.4 percent, according to the Bloomberg News survey median. Economists forecast spending, which makes up more than two-thirds of the economy, would rise 0.4 percent for a second month, according to the median of 76 estimates in the Bloomberg survey. The report's price gauge tied to spending patterns and excluding food and energy costs, the Fed's preferred measure, increased 0.1 percent in August for a sixth consecutive month. It was up 1.8 percent from August 2006, the smallest gain since February 2004. Some Fed policy makers, including Ben S. Bernanke before becoming chairman, have said they would prefer core inflation within a one percent to two percent range. Adjusted for inflation, spending also rose 0.6 percent in August, the most since October, after a 0.3-percent gain the prior month, the report showed.