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by Stockwatch Business Reporter

West Texas Intermediate crude for November delivery lost $1.27 to $89.74 on the New York Merc, while Brent for November lost $1.11 to $92.31 (all figures in this para U.S.). Western Canadian Select traded at a discount of $13.15 to WTI ($76.59), up from a discount of $13.30. Natural gas for November added 10.7 cents to $4.03. The TSX energy index lost 1.50 points to close at 282.62.

Abby Badwi's Bankers Petroleum Ltd. (BNK) lost 11 cents to $4.90 on 5.72 million shares, its first time below $5 since March. The Albania-focused company is releasing its third quarter operational update Monday at midnight. It will hold a conference call shortly after the press release. Investors seem wary, probably because of weak oil prices. The price Bankers receives for its oil is usually about 80 per cent of Brent, and Brent fell from over $110 (U.S.) to less than $95 (U.S.) during the third quarter, whereas it generally stayed between $105 (U.S.) and $115 (U.S.) in the second quarter. That means Bankers will report lower realized prices for its oil. As well, the company is basing its budget this year on a Brent price of $100 (U.S.), so investors will want to know what happens now that it is heading closer to $90 (U.S.). (President and chief executive officer David French was on BNN in mid-September and said his outlook on Brent was "mid-90s to high 90s, even to 100," but he also noted that Brent was well above $100 (U.S.) for the first half of the year. The budget for this year should be fine.) Analysts are bullish. Credit Suisse, which has a price target of $7.50 on Bankers, wondered "Opportunity Knocks?" in a research note yesterday and recommended that investors "increase exposure at current prices." Insiders have been doing just that. Many of them acquired shares in September through purchase plans, but three of them -- Mr. French, chief financial officer Doug Urch and engineering vice-president Bruce Beveridge -- also bought 73,500 shares in the market.

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