Brent crude jumps to $124 on Arab unrest

SINGAPORE, APRIL 25:

Oil was up in the Asian trade today as escalating tensions in Libya, Syria and Yemen heightened the fears of supply disruption in the Middle East and North African region.

New York’s main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in June, rose 52 cents to $112.81 a barrel, while Brent North Sea crude for June gained 54 cents to $124.53.

“The violence in Syria and Yemen escalated over the weekend, and traders worry about supply disruption,” said Mr Ong Yi Ling, an investment analyst for Phillip Futures in Singapore.

In oil-producing Libya, veteran leader Muammar Gaddafi’s office in his immense Tripoli residence was destroyed in an air strike by NATO warplanes enforcing a UN resolution early Monday.

Libyan rebels have been seeking to oust Mr Gaddafi after uprisings deposed the leaders of Tunisia and Egypt earlier this year.

(Source: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/markets/commodities/article1765704.ece)