Share

Oil prices resume rise

London - World oil prices resumed their rise on Friday after the dollar eased and militants blew up another pipeline in African producer Nigeria.

At around 13:00, US benchmark West Texas Intermediate for delivery in June was up 17 cents at $48.33 a barrel.

Brent North Sea crude for July gained 8c to $48.89 a barrel compared with Thursday's close.

Analysts said prices resumed their uptick after the dollar eased and threats of supply disruptions returned to the fore following the bombing of a gas pipeline owned by the Nigerian subsidiary of Italy's Eni in the latest attack on the country's oil facilities.

Earlier, a new militant group called the Niger Delta Avengers (NDA) carried out several attacks on key pipelines and facilities operated by oil majors Shell and Chevron, hurting output in Africa's biggest economy and major crude producer.

Officials said Nigeria's output had slumped to 1.4 million barrels per day from 2.2 million because of the unrest.

The Nigeria disruptions come on top of a reduction in Canada's output due to wildfires threatening the country's oil sands region.

"The pause in the dollar rally and continued concerns over supply disruptions in Nigeria are supportive of oil prices," said Bernard Aw, an analyst with IG Markets in Singapore.

"In addition, Anas Al-Saleh, Kuwait's acting oil minister... expects the oil market to rebalance in the second half of this year as demand increases. Therefore, it could be only a matter of time before crude pushes beyond $50," he told AFP.

A rally that pushed oil prices to a series of 2016 highs since last week had taken a breather over the past two days after minutes of an April meeting showed that the US Fed kept the door open to raising interest rates in June, sending the dollar higher.

A stronger greenback puts downward pressure on oil, as it makes the dollar-priced commodity more expensive, curtailing demand and depressing prices.

US Federal Reserve policymakers meet from June 14 to June 15, with investors watching their decision on interest rates.

The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries also meets on June 2 in Vienna, with the market fixed on whether they will take action to reduce the global crude supply glut.


We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Rand - Dollar
19.07
-0.9%
Rand - Pound
24.05
-0.6%
Rand - Euro
20.56
-0.4%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.38
-0.2%
Rand - Yen
0.13
-0.8%
Platinum
894.64
-0.3%
Palladium
992.99
-0.9%
Gold
2,198.42
+0.2%
Silver
24.47
-0.7%
Brent Crude
86.09
-0.2%
Top 40
67,986
+0.5%
All Share
74,202
+0.4%
Resource 10
56,458
+1.4%
Industrial 25
103,645
+0.4%
Financial 15
16,496
-0.2%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Company Snapshot
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE
Government tenders

Find public sector tender opportunities in South Africa here.

Government tenders
This portal provides access to information on all tenders made by all public sector organisations in all spheres of government.
Browse tenders