Oil steady at $74 amid terror alert

NEW YORK: Crude oil was little changed amid speculation that terrorist threats won't slow the economy or curb air travel as much as expected yesterday, when a plot to bomb aircraft heading for the US was discovered.

British Airways, Europe's third-largest airline, said it plans to operate on a “near-normal” schedule. Air travel on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean was disrupted after UK authorities arrested 24 men they said were planning to blow up planes.

In the three months after September 11 assault, oil had lost 35%. “There was a knee-jerk response yesterday because people were expecting the same impact as September 11,” said Antoine Halff, an energy analyst with Fimat USA in New York.

Crude oil for September delivery rose 15 cents to $74.15 a barrel in the morning trade on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The International Energy Agency lowered its estimate of US oil supply because of the partial closure of Alaska's Prudhoe Bay field, the nation’s largest.

BP unexpectedly closed part of the 400,000 barrel-a-day field earlier this week to begin repairs to corroded pipes that may take months.