Oil futures rise, as supply fears wait in the wings


Oil futures climbed on Monday, with the commodity picking up where it left off last week, when prices rebounded as investor appetite for riskier assets improved.

West Texas Intermediate futures
CLH8, +1.04%
rose 80 cents, or 1.3%, to $62.35 a barrel, after a 4.2% gain last week. Mondays move higher, if it holds, would mark the fourth-straight winning session for U.S. crude.

Brent crude
LCOJ8, +0.97%
, the global benchmark, added 72 cents, or 1.1%, to $65.56 a barrel. Brent rose 3.3% last week.


An escalation in tensions in the Middle East also drove oil prices upward, with Israels Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday warning that his country will directly strike oil producer Iran if Tehran uses Syria to test his country.

Read: Netanyahu warns Israel may strike Iran if it doesnt ease up in Syria

The gains in oil prices could soon be tested by concerns over rising U.S. crude oil output, which is already at record highs. Should U.S. production and inventories continue to build in weekly data, prices could soon start easing, analysts said.


Crude kept its gains Friday after oil-field services firm Baker Hughes Inc.
BHGE, +1.49%
said the number of U.S. oil rigs rose by seven last week to 798, marking the fourth-straight rise.

Among other energy contracts, natural gas for March delivery
NGH18, +0.31%
put on 1 cents, or 0.5%, to reach $2.57 per million British thermal units.


March gasoline
RBH8, +1.48%
rose 2 cents, or 1.1%, to $1.77 a gallon. March heating oil
HOH8, +1.02%
moved higher by 2 cents, or 1.2%, to $1.93 a gallon.


The dollar traded flat to modestly higher against rivals on Monday, with the ICE Dollar Index
DXY, +0.13%
fractionally higher. A weaker buck can boost commodities priced in dollars, because it makes them cheaper to buy for holders of other currencies.


Biman Mukherji contributed to this report.

Related Topics Futures Commodities Markets Commodity Futures Trading Commission Oil

Quote References CLH8 +0.64 +1.04% LCOJ8 +0.63 +0.97% BHGE +0.39 +1.49% NGH18 +0.01 +0.31% RBH8 +0.03 +1.48% HOH8 +0.02 +1.02% DXY +0.12 +0.13% Show all references
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