2024-02-10 06:18:14
Oil prices achieved strong weekly gains of regarding six percent, with escalating concerns regarding supplies from the Middle East, and pressures on the markets of refinery products as a result of the outages.
Contract settlement
Brent crude futures rose 56 cents, or 0.7 percent, to $82.19 per barrel when contracts were settled on Friday, and US West Texas Intermediate crude futures increased 62 cents, or 0.8 percent, to $76.84 per barrel when settling.
Oil futures rose over the course of the week by more than 6 percent, supported by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s rejection of a ceasefire proposal submitted by Hamas on Wednesday. The rise this week came following a loss of seven percent the previous week.
Since the beginning of this year, Brent contracts have recorded gains of regarding 7 percent, while Nymex crude has achieved an increase of regarding 6.9 percent.
Baker Hughes Energy Services said that American energy companies this week also added four oil and natural gas platforms to 623 platforms, the highest level since mid-December.
US domestic production returned this week to a record level of 13.3 million barrels per day, according to the US Energy Information Administration. Last month, cold weather caused widespread shutdowns in oil-producing regions.
On Friday, Israeli forces continued their aerial bombardment of the Gaza Strip. The bombing that targeted the southern border city of Rafah on Thursday helped oil prices rise by regarding three percent.
Crude oil futures received support from rising gasoline and diesel prices, as the shutdown of a number of refineries affected supply.
Ukraine launched drone attacks on two oil refineries in southern Russia on Friday, leading to a fire at the Ilsky refinery. The Avibsky refinery, also located in the Krasnodar Krai region, on the border with Crimea on the Black Sea and the coast of the Sea of Azov, was the other facility attacked.
Russia increased its crude exports in February beyond what was scheduled in the OPEC+ agreement, following drone attacks and outages at its refineries.
Yesterday, Thursday, the US Treasury Department imposed sanctions on a tanker registered in Liberia for violating the maximum limit imposed by a coalition of Western countries on Russian oil prices.
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