Crude prices ended on an upswing Thursday as tensions reached a peak in Libya and an “out of control” Canadian wildfire gained momentum, according to Bloomberg MarketWatch.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, West Texas Intermediate crude added 54 cents, or 1.2%, to end at $44.32 a barrel. Earlier in the day, trading reached as high as $46.07 a barrel.
July Brent crude, the global benchmark, gained 39 cents, or 0.9%, on the London ICE Futures Exchange to end trade at $45.01 a barrel, thus closing out a four-day consecutive loss.
Conflict arose in Libya between opposition groups resulting in an interruption of cargo loading operations. A Tripoli crude oil representative warned that the country’s oil output could drop by 120,000 barrels a day if the Benghazi-backed National Oil Corporation set up by the rival eastern government continues to block tankers, Reuters reported.
Meanwhile, the enormous Fort McMurray wildfire continues to scorch land near Alberta, growing larger and wreaking havoc in the form of mandatory evacuations and suspending operations. Reuters reported that the wildfire has grown to five times its initial size and has spread south.
Matt Smith, director of commodity research at Clipper Data, said some estimates put the total amount of Canadian output knocked offline as high as 800,000 barrels a day, according to the report.
“As more information comes in, it appears that the impact on production of the wildfires in Alberta will be significant. Producers in the Canadian province have begun shutting capacity as a response to spreading wildfire, which is now listed as ‘out of control,’” wrote analysts at JBC Energy.
The Canadian wildfires propelled crude prices before the close of Wednesday’s session, but prices declined when a U.S. Department of Energy report revealed a larger-than-expected rise in crude oil stockpiles. Inventories increased by 2.8 million barrels for the week ended April 29 to a new weekly record, according to the Bloomberg report.
June natural gas contracts on the New York Mercantile Exchange declined 6.5 cents, or 3%, to settle at $2.076 per million British thermal units.