OPEC president says rise in output likely

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries likely will raise its output ceiling by 500,000 barrels a day if prices stay at present levels, the oil cartel’s president said Monday.

With OPEC already overshooting quotas by about 700,000 barrels a day, any such move mostly would have a psychological effect by signaling that the organization is formally ready to pump more in an effort to regulate prices.

Oil prices have shot up by nearly 20 percent in the past five weeks to around $54 a barrel in New York — a little more than $1 shy of all-time records — putting pressure on the 11-nation group to take action.

“If the prices continue at the present rate, then we will increase our production,” said Kuwaiti Oil Minister Sheik Ahmed Fahd Al Ahmed Al Sabah on Monday. “If necessary, we will increase by 500,000.”

Software

IBM to purchase Ascential for $1 billion

International Business Machines Corp. is buying Ascential Software Corp., which makes software that helps business manage data, for $1.1 billion in cash.

IBM said Monday the acquisition addressed a key customer challenge — applying technology to respond more quickly to changing market conditions. The company said that retailers use Ascential’s software to gather, standardize and structure sales information from multiple channels, such as the Internet, catalogs and storefronts, and make rapid inventory and pricing adjustments in response to changing market demands.

Revenue at Ascential Software, a publicly held company based in Westboro, Mass., rose 46 percent to $271.9 million in 2004.

The acquisition is subject to approval by regulators and Ascential Software shareholders, and is expected to close in the second quarter.

Wall street

Stocks post gains as inflation fears lurk

Wall Street managed a moderate gain Monday in a volatile session that saw investors alternating between worries about interest rates and delight in a new wave of merger deals.

News of a successor to Michael Eisner at The Walt Disney Co. and a new chief executive officer at American International Group Inc. lifted stocks, as did planned acquisitions by Altria Group Inc. and IBM Corp.

However, the gains were muted by the inflation worries that sent stocks falling last week, as Federal Reserve board member Janet Yellen warned that rising interest rates could hurt borrowers. A rise in oil prices also unnerved investors, with a barrel of light crude settling at $54.95, up 52 cents, on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

“Investors remain very, very concerned, and they should be, that we’re headed toward higher inflation and higher interest rates,” said Hugh Johnson, chairman of Johnson Illington Advisors.