Brazilian oil workers have started a five day strike at the country's
main oil field, cutting production by at least 300,000 barrels per day.
Employees
of Petrobras, Brazil's state-run oil company, are demanding additional
pay. They say workers at 13 oil platforms in the Campos Basin are
already participating in the strike.
Union leaders say they
expect production at more than 30 of the region's 42 oil platforms to
eventually come to a near standstill.
Drilling in the Campos
Basin accounts for 80 percent of Brazil's crude oil output, and
concerns about the strike at one point pushed the price of crude oil to
more than $146 a barrel in New York trading Monday.
Oil prices hit a record high Friday of $147.27 a barrel in New York.
Some
economists also point to concerns about violence in Nigeria and
instability in the Middle East for helping to drive oil prices higher.
Meanwhile,
Dutch-based oil giant Royal Dutch Shell has offered to buy Canada's
Duvernay Oil Corporation for more than $5 billion.
Duvernay's operations have been focused on natural gas reserves in western Canada.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.
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Brazilian Oil Workers Strike, Cutting Output By At Least 300,000 Barrels Per Day
update