RENEE MONTAGNE, host: NPR's business news starts with oil prices surging higher.</s>RENEE MONTAGNE, host: A barrel of oil now costs just under $92. That's the highest price oil has reached since the fall of 2008. The surge comes after an OPEC meeting this weekend. Members of the oil cartel decided not to increase oil production for at least six more months. And with the East Coast blanketed in snow, heating oil prices are also up. A gallon now costs more than $2.50.
A barrel of oil costs just under $92. That's the highest price oil has reached since October of 2008. The surge comes after an OPEC meeting over the weekend. Meanwhile, the Chinese government raised interest rates over the weekend for the second time in two months. It's an attempt to fight rising inflation.