Oil rises on Kurdistan output halt
An oil tanker passes through the Bosphorus to the Black Sea in Istanbul. PHOTO: REUTERS
Oil prices rose on Monday after a halt to oil exports from Iraqi Kurdistan via Turkey and moves to contain a potential banking crisis that could have hit demand for crude.
Brent crude futures were up $1.16, or 1.6%, at $76.15 a barrel by 1210 GMT. West Texas Intermediate US crude rose $1.19, or 1.7%, to $70.45.
Brent gained 2.8% last week while WTI rebounded by 3.8% as jitters in the banking sector eased.
About half a percent of global oil supply, or 450,000bpd, of crude exports from Kurdistan stopped on Saturday after a victory in an arbitration case confirmed Baghdad’s consent was needed to ship the oil from Turkey.
First Citizens BancShares Inc said it will acquire the deposits and loans of failed Silicon Valley Bank, closing one chapter in the crisis of confidence that has ripped through financial markets.
Oil prices also drew support from Putin’s plans to station tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 28th, 2023.
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