Oil Rises to Near $107 a Barrel on Iraq Violence

The price of oil rose again Friday, nearing $107 a barrel, as the growing crisis in Iraq fuels concerns that crude supplies from OPEC’s second-largest producer could be hurt.

Crude oil rose 38 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $106.91 a barrel. Oil prices rose more than $2 a barrel on Thursday, and 4 percent for the week.

Oil prices hit 10-month highs after an al-Qaida-inspired group vowed to march on Baghdad after capturing two key Iraqi cities this week. However, the violence is mostly centered in Iraq’s north, away from the major oil-producing regions of the south.

The turmoil hasn’t yet slowed exports, though it raised concerns about whether Iraq can continue rebuilding its oil infrastructure and boost output to meet global demand.

Other energy commodities were mostly lower. Heating oil was mostly unchanged at $2.99 a gallon. Wholesale gasoline futures fell 3 cents, or 0.8 percent, to $3.06 a gallon. Natural gas fell 2 cents, or 0.5 percent, to $4.74 per thousand cubic feet.

In metals trading, gold rose 10 cents to $1,274.10 an ounce, and silver rose 12 cents, or 0.6 percent, to $19.66 an ounce. July copper rose a penny, or 0.5 percent, to $3.03 a pound. Platinum for July delivery fell $6.30, or 0.4 percent, to $1,435 an ounce; and palladium for September delivery fell $6.80, or 0.8 percent, to $812.60 an ounce.

Crop prices rose. Wheat rose a penny, or 0.1 percent, to $5.86 a bushel; corn rose 3 cents, or 0.7 percent, to $4.47 a bushel; and soybeans rose 11 cents, or 0.7 percent, to $14.26 a bushel.

This article appeared in print in the June 17th, 2014 edition of Hamodia.