Shares of BP PLC (BP) have been in free fall the past month as investors worry whether or not the company is going to be able to deal with the oil disaster in the Gulf, but the stock made a nice move today, gaining 12.3% on the day to close the session at $32.78.

While today's price jump was impressive, it was still not enough to make up for the 16% drop we saw yesterday, which marked the stock's worst trading day since 1972.

In Asian trade Thursday morning, oil was pushed past $74 per barrel following a report that crude inventories in the U.S. fell more than expected. The July crude contract hit $74.25 in late trading, an increase of $1.39 per barrel. The drop in oil supplies was attributed to growing consumer demand. A week ago, crude supplies dropped by 1.4 million barrels while analysts were calling for an increase of 1 million barrels.

According to Barclays Capital, "Oil prices are clearly at the mercy of jittery nerves and fragile sentiment ... Once the nerves calm down, and fundamentals reassert themselves, we would expect prices to move higher quickly." Solid reasoning, but I don't think that Barclays is really going out on a limb here.

BP Plc (BP) is facing many problems as a result of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico -- and now we are getting an idea of the financial ramifications of the spill (or at least one research firm's estimate). According to research firm Tudor Pickering Holt, BP and other companies face a liability of $35 billion to $40 billion as a result of the ongoing oil spill in the Gulf.

Analysts from the firm compared the current spill to the costs associated with the Exxon Valdez spill and added in some timing estimates and "guess work" to come up with a potential price tag. The analysts told Fox Business, "You've got to try and put some realistic projections on oil spill liability before you can try to value any stock involved."

It's already Wednesday but BP (BP) is still trying to decide whether to use its "top kill" method to stop the oil gushing out of a broken well at the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico. It's been more than a month since the explosion that caused the massive spill. The latest attempt includes "force-feeding" the leak with "heavy drilling mud and cement."

BP's CEO Tony Hayward told NBC's Today show that the "top kill" procedure could happen Wednesday if he okays the procedure. This is just the latest in a series of attempts by BP to stem the tide of flowing black gold from the busted pipeline.

It's has been over a month since BP's (BP) oil well in the Gulf of Mexico exploded and collapsed, and the company has still not been able to stop the flow of oil into the ocean. The company's engineers are now hoping that they finally will be able to stop the leak as early as the 25th.

There has been a lot of debate over just how much oil is being leaked into the ocean. One thing is for sure: any oil is too much oil. Everyone is waiting to hear the good news that BP has been able to successfully stop the oil from spewing into the gulf.

The worst fear has occurred. Oil from the BP (BP) spill has been seen by the European Space Agency moving south into the fast-moving Loop Current -- a body of fast-flowing water coming from the Caribbean. They warn that the oil slick will reach Florida within approximately six days.

Scientists from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the U.S. government's climate body confirmed the oil movement, but said it was a "light sheen." It could mix with the water and be hard to detect.

It has been three weeks since a BP (BP) oil rig exploded and sank in the Gulf of Mexico, and still the company has not been able to stop oil from spewing into the gulf. Friday, the companies involved got a earful from President Obama.

The three companies involved in the oil spill are BP, Transocean Offshore (RIG) and Halliburton (HAL).

Since April 20 when a BP (BP) oil rig ruptured and toppled into the ocean, 5,000 barrels of oil a day have leaked into the ocean off the U.S. Gulf Coast.

So far, BP engineers have tried unsuccessfully to cap the rupture. Their latest attempt was to drop a 98-ton dome over the spill in hopes of containing the oil. This too, failed. Gas and underwater pressure formed ice crystals on top of the dome, forcing engineers to abort the plan.

To make matters worse, a vessel chartered by the Financial Times and oil spill consultants spotted thick crude oil deposits at the mouth of South Pass, one of the navigable channels of the Mississippi.

On April 20, 2010, a BP (BP) oil rig ruptured and toppled into the ocean, killing 11 crew members and initiating a massive oil spill. Now, BP engineers have deployed a 98-ton container with which they hope to contain the primary oil leak.

An estimated 210,000 gallons have poured into the gulf each day since the leak began. So far, efforts to stop the gushing oil have been unsuccessful. First, robots tried to shut the valves that control the oil flow. This did not work. So now this four-story metal "funnel" has been suspended just above the oil leak. Engineers hope to lower it onto the sea floor within days. Doing so requires pin-point precision, and they are battling darkness and high underwater pressure.