AFP cited Ms Christine Lagarde economy minister of France said as saying that massive speculation in the oil futures market must be avoided, as oil prices soared on concerns over unrest in the Middle East.

Ms Lagarde who is on a visit to Singapore said that high oil prices are a concern to the world not just particular countries and regions. So we are very attentive to what is happening in these markets. We need to be very, very careful with what's happening in the futures market and we need to avoid massive speculation.

Ms Lagarde said that she will be speaking with the Saudi Arabian vice minister in charge of oil to understand from them what plans they have going forward.

Analysts at research house Capital Economics said in a market commentary that at this rate it will not be long before prices revisit the highs above USD 140 seen in 2008. Given the pace at which markets are moving and events are unfolding in the Middle East and North Africa we are of course extremely wary of making any strong calls on what happens next.

(Sourced from AFP)