NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil prices rose above $61 a barrel on Friday as nervous traders boosted positions ahead of a rare four-day break in U.S. open outcry futures trade.
The New York Mercantile Exchange said on Friday it will close floor trading on Tuesday, January 2, to honour former President Gerald Ford, who died earlier in the week.
New York oil futures settled 52 cents higher at $61.05 a barrel, a penny above the close on the last day of trading in 2005. Friday's settle was far below this year's peak of over $78 in mid-July.