New York, August 3-- Oil prices soared to a new record high above $44 a barrel on Tuesday after OPEC said it couldn't immediately boost production.
The rise in prices was also fueled by fears of terrorist attacks in the U.S., disruptions to Iraqi crude exports, and uncertainty over the fate of Russian oil giant OAO Yukos.
The September light sweet crude contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange rose 42 cents in London trading to $44.24 a barrel -- the highest level since crude futures began trading on the Nymex in 1983.
Since June, oil prices have leapt to record levels, but Tuesday was the first time prices breached the $44 a barrel barrier.
On Tuesday, the president of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries said the cartel couldn't immediately increase output to help bring prices down.
Purnomo Yusgiantoro, who is also Indonesia's oil minister, said Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil producer, had spare capacity, but couldn't bring more crude oil to the market in the short-term.
