Oil Prices Fall Amid Middle East Supply Disruptions
Oil prices fell by around 1% on Thursday as investors weighed the impact of supply disruptions in the Middle East. Disruptions caused by strikes between Saudi Arabia and Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis have raised concerns about a global energy shortage.
The price of Brent crude futures closed down $1.01, or 0.95%, at $104.82 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate futures fell 52 cents, or 0.5%, to $101.91 a barrel. Both benchmarks had fallen about 3% on Wednesday.
Saudi Arabia was seeking to return half the capacity of its East-West oil pipeline within days after it was halted last week following drone attacks. The pipeline supplies crude to the Red Sea export hub of Yanbu, and traders said a prolonged closure could cut off as much as 4% of global oil supply.