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Brent crude, the international oil benchmark, has surpassed $120 a barrel, reaching a two-month high as gasoline and diesel fuel prices continue to rise. The U.S. oil benchmark, West Texas Intermediate, also rose, reaching more than $116 a barrel. The price spike comes at a time when demand in the United States is expected to rise with the start of the summer driving season and European leaders are trying to reach agreement on a Russian oil embargo.

A body found in a barrel at Lake Mead on Sunday may have been underwater for as long as four decades and more bodies are likely to appear as the lake recedes due to severe drought, according to Las Vegas Metro police. Boaters discovered the body around 3 p.m. Sunday, KTLA sister station KLAS reported. Police suspect the person was killed in the 1980s based on personal items in the barrel, Las Vegas Metro police homicide Lt. Ray Spencer said. He would not elaborate on the person’s cause of death or the items found, citing the ongoing investigation. A photo...

U.S. oil tumbled more than 8% on Monday, breaking below $100 per barrel, amid talks between Russia and Ukraine as well as new lockdowns in China — which could dent demand. West Texas Intermediate crude futures, the U.S. oil benchmark, lost 8.75% to trade at $99.76 per barrel. International benchmark Brent crude shed 8% to trade at $103.68 per barrel.

U.S. crude oil surged more than 8% in early trading on Sunday evening as the market continued to react to supply disruptions stemming from Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine and the possibility of a ban on Russian oil and natural gas.West Texas Intermediate crude futures, the U.S. oil benchmark, traded 8% higher to above $125 a barrel, the highest since July 2008. At one point the price rose to $130.50 Sunday evening before retreating.The international benchmark, Brent crude, traded 9% higher to $128.60, also the highest price seen since 2008. Brent hit a high of $139.13 at one point overnight.“Oil...

Gasoline prices accelerated at a stunning pace on Friday, jumping more than 11 cents from the day before. On Friday, the national average gas price jumped to $3.837. That is as much as they rose in the entire week through Thursday, when they rose to $3.72 from $3.62 a week before. A week ago, gas prices were $3.572, so Friday’s gas price is 7.4 percent higher over the week.

The suspect, who had two open felony warrants, 'had a weapon and was pointing it at officers,' officials sayThe person authorities believe shot and killed a beloved Texas Cracker Barrel employee on Saturday was killed by deputies on Monday, a report said. Fox 26 Houston, citing the Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez, said the officer-involved shooting occurred near Atascocita High School after a Dodge Charger that matched the description of the vehicle used in the incident was located. Authorities said the suspect, who had two open felony warrants, "had a weapon and was pointing it at officers." Robin Baucom, 59,...

By now even the 165,727 "professional investors" who are long the USO ETF on the free, glitch-prone platform Robin Hood, are aware that the problem facing global oil production is that there is simply no storage where to put all the physical oil (as we warned in late March).And if even the army of Robinhood-ers now know how impossible it is to find space for physical oil on the continental US, then Saudi Arabia - which sparked the current crude crisis and which will not stop until shale is completely crushed - is certainly aware.Which is why with the US unable to store...

Think I am going to be topping off my gas tank every time I go out. I saw a report the other day where there was a gas station in the Midwest that had 12 cents a gallon. Right now ever gas station is filled. The gas trucks are on hold ,and we even have ships that cannot deliver sitting off the coasts because there are no trucks and port is full. It's a good time to buy the dip. Nevertheless, this economy needs to be turned back on.

Syria's regime killed at least 28 people, mostly civilians, on Saturday when its warplanes dropped massive makeshift bombs on a town held by the Islamic State (ISIS) group, a monitor said. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the bombs used in the attacks on Al-Bab, in the northern province of Aleppo, were three times more destructive than so-called barrel bombs, which have already drawn widespread international condemnation. "The army used 'container bombs' which are three times more powerful than 'barrel bombs'," said Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman. The barrel bomb was previously joined by the elephant rocket, another crude...

Oil futures continued to tumble Monday, knocked to fresh 5 1/2 year lows as investors remain focused on a surging dollar and growing supplies of crude oil. Meanwhile, news reports last week said Russian oil production continued to rise in December. “The reason behind what could be the next leg lower? The economic conditions the oil markets face have not changed, which is eliminating buyers from even considering entering [long] positions,” said Jameel Ahmad, chief market analyst at FXTM. A rising U.S. currency makes dollar-denominated crude more expensive to users of euros, yen and other units.

**SNIP** Bourbon’s popularity has surged ever since the amber liquor became a star of Mad Men. Magazines such as GQ and Bon Appétit have devoted pages to articles on bourbon cocktails. The Manhattan and Old Fashioned have become fashionable again. President Barack Obama recently proposed a “Bourbon Summit” with Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell. “Whiskey has gone away from being seen as an old man drink,” says Mahesh Patel, a structural engineer who owns 4,000 bottles of whiskey and sponsors an annual tasting conference in Las Vegas. Sales of bourbon are growing at a dizzying rate. Domestic sales of Kentucky-made bourbon...

Syria killed Aleppo residents with a new Russian-made “barrel bomb,” large old drums stuffed with explosives, oil and pieces steel that maim, kill and terrorize, the London Telegraph reported Sunday morning. The homemade bomb spread devastation across a wide swath of the commercial hub, as seen in a video published by the London newspaper. "The sound was like nothing else I've ever heard. It was an almighty whoosh," rebel fighter Mohammed Ibrahim told the Telegraph. The blast perforated his eardrums, but others, including his cousin, were killed by the bomb, which was dropped by low-flying helicopters. Rebels are desperately trying...

It may come as a surprise to some (and boy, do I feel like a cantankerous old geezer for saying this,) but firearms are a mature technology. We all have to be aware that just because you can do something, doesn’t mean you should” Following the invention of the double column magazine by Deudonne Saive, there really haven’t been a whole lot of original ideas coming out of the handgun industry for the last 75 years. Yes, I know, underqualified hacks like me will tell you all about the latest whizbang doodad from SHOT show, but in comparison to...

Since leaving office in 1999, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich has spent much of his time convincing conservatives to support government subsidies for large corporations, reports the Washington Examiner. In addition to his work as a “strategic consultant” for government-sponsored mortgage lender Freddie Mac, the Examiner reports that tax filings show Gingrich received money from the ethanol lobby. Green Energy, a lobbying group that works to secure and create government subsidies for the much-criticized ethanol industry, paid the Gingrich Group more than $300,000 as recently as 2009. Unlike most conservative experts on the industry, Gingrich is a staunch advocate of...

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Some OPEC members want oil prices to rise to $100 a barrel to offset the decline in the dollar. The value of the dollar, which has slipped 13% since June against major world currencies, means that the "real price" of oil is about $20 less than current levels, Venezuela's Energy and Oil Minister Rafael Ramirez said after Thursday's OPEC meeting in Vienna. OPEC, which accounts for 40% of global crude output, left targets unchanged and called for stronger adherence to production quotas, Bloomberg News said. "They're concerned about the dollar because as the dollar weakens, prices go up," Nordine Ait-Laoussine,...

Many obsessive riflemen “know” a lot of things about the insides of their barrels. They know they must break-in barrels and that any bore only slightly smudged by the passage of bullets will shoot less accurately compared with a barrel as clean as Aunt Josie’s kitchen floor. First, let’s examine “proper” barrel break-in. According to just about everybody, this is accomplished by firing one shot, cleaning the barrel of all powder and copper fouling, firing another shot, cleaning, etc. Advice on how long to continue this tedious routine varies from 10 to 30 rounds. The procedure supposedly smooths the bore,...

. Legendary oil man T. Boone Pickens says that if the U.S. doesn’t take major steps to curb its reliance on foreign oil, the consequences will be drastic. “Let’s say in 10 years, you do nothing,” Pickens tells Fortune. “You will be importing 75 percent of your oil (up from 68 percent now), and you’ll be paying $300 a barrel.” .

Crude oil prices were higher again Monday, hitting a new record at $108.17 per barrel before falling back a bit but remaining above $107 per barrel at the close of floor trade in New York. April contracts for West Texas Intermediate crude were at $107.85 per barrel at the close on the New York Mercantile Exchange, a gain of $2.70 on the session and slight decline from its peak earlier, while Brent crude added $1.79 to $104.17 per barrel on the ICE Futures Europe exchange in London. Investors put their money into oil as a hedge against declines in the...

SANTA FE, N.M. -- A woman drowned when she apparently tried to retrieve a kitten from a 55-gallon rain barrel at her home southeast of Santa Fe. Santa Fe County Sheriff Greg Solano said 48-year-old Deborah Hill was found by her husband Sunday afternoon after he returned home from running errands. Solano said the couple had dragged the plastic barrel inside their home because they wanted to thaw ice that had formed in the barrel. The barrel, which Solano said was tied to a door so it wouldn't tip, was about one-third full of water when the kitten fell in....