Oil prices rose in early Asian trading, Thursday, as ongoing concerns about escalating tensions in the Middle East overshadowed the waning concerns about disruption to shipping traffic, with some international shipping companies announcing a return to the Red Sea route.
Brent crude futures rose 20 cents, or 0.3 percent, to $79.85 per barrel by 0133 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate crude futures also increased 24 cents, or 0.3 percent, to $74.35 per barrel.
Prices fell by about two percent on Wednesday, as major shipping companies began returning to the Red Sea.
“Concerns about navigation in the Red Sea have subsided, but continued concerns about tensions in the Middle East, especially about Iran’s involvement, may make it difficult to sell more,” said Hiroyuki Kikukawa, president of NS Trading, a unit of Nissan Securities.
The Danish shipping company Maersk announced that it had set dates for dozens of container ships to transit through the Suez Canal and the Red Sea in the coming weeks after calling for a temporary halt to these routes earlier this month against the backdrop of attacks launched by the Yemeni Houthi group allied with Iran.
The market showed little reaction to the rise in US crude inventories last week.
US oil inventories increased by 1.84 million barrels in the week ending December 22, according to market sources citing American Petroleum Institute figures on Wednesday.
2023-12-28 02:28:55
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