Iraq Oil Lifting Remains on Hold

Iraqi oil lifting remained on hold as Baghdad continued to insist on a surcharge for crude sales under the UN's oil-for-food program, industry sources said. A tanker chartered to the Indian Oil Corp (IOC) remained berthed at Iraq's Mina al-Bakr port on the Gulf but that no oil was being pumped aboard. An industry official in India said that IOC had been asked to pay a surcharge outside the terms of the UN exchange in order to secure its cargo but had refused. Iraq suspended 2.3 million barrels daily of oil sales on December 1. Another seven vessels were anchored outside the port. There were no vessels at Iraq's other authorized outlet Ceyhan, in Turkey.