Oil held gains as Ukraine attacked another Russian vessel over the weekend, putting at risk significant flows of the nation’s commodities from the Black Sea such as crude and grains.
West Texas Intermediate traded near $83 a barrel at the start of the week in Asia after rising more than 4% over the previous two sessions. On Saturday, a sea drone hit a Russian-flagged oil tanker that supplies fuel to Moscow’s forces in Syria. That followed an attack on a naval vessel on Friday.
The hostilities could threaten Russia’s commodity exports via the Black Sea, a route that accounts for 15% to 20% of the oil that Russia sells daily on global markets and most of the nation’s grain.
Oil capped a sixth weekly gain on Friday, the longest rising streak since June 2022. Futures have erased year-to-date losses following supply cuts from Saudi Arabia and Russia, leading to a tightening of the market. Over the weekend, the kingdom raised nearly all of its prices for September to Asia and Europe.
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