In this paper it is shown how the GARCH properties of oil price changes can
be employed to forecast the oil price distribution over short-term horizon
s. The forecasting methodology is semiparametric and it is based on the boo
tstrap approach. The results of an out-of-sample forecasting exercise, carr
ied out using the Brent oil price series, suggest that the forecasting appr
oach can be used to obtain a performance measure for the forward price, in
addition to compute interval forecasts for the oil price. (C) 2001 Elsevier
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