Iraq shuts oil flow after threat by militants

摘要

Baghdad/London-Iraqi oil flows to the Basra Oil Terminal,currently the country's only export outlet,were halted Aug 9 after the Southern Oil Co received threats from the Medhi Army loyal to radical Iraqi Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr,Iraqi oil ministry officials said.Already concerned about diminishing levels of spare capacity within OPEC,the ongoing woes of Russian oil giant Yukos and the upcoming referendum in key OPEC producer Venezuela,oil markets reacted strongly.