Oil Prices Rise at the Start of the New Year

Oil prices gained in the first week of the year, supported by production disruptions in Libya and increasing tensions in the Middle East amid the Gaza war and Houthi attacks on ships in the Red Sea. The price of Brent crude futures rose by $1.17, or 1.51%, to $78.76 per barrel, ending the week up by about 2%. Meanwhile, U.S. crude futures rose by $1.62, or 2.24%, to $73.81 per barrel, concluding the week with gains of around 3%. Protesters in Libya disrupted supplies from the Sharara and El Feel fields, which could lead to around 300,000 barrels per day being removed from the market. At the same time, the Houthi armed group in Yemen claimed responsibility for another attack on a commercial ship in the Red Sea. The shipping giant Maersk announced that it would reroute all its vessels away from the Red Sea for the foreseeable future, warning customers of potential disruptions.