Daily Times

Crude oil prices remained on the front foot on Thursday amid consistent supply concerns amid looming European ban on Russian oil, the world’s second-largest oil exporter. As of 1210 hours GMT, Brent, the international benchmark for two-thirds of the world’s oil, gained $0.69 (+0.61 percent) to reach $114.72 a barrel. The West Texas Intermediate (WTI), the main oil benchmark for North America, increased to $111.12 a barrel, up by $0.79 (+0.72 percent). The price for Opec basket was recorded at $114.96 a barrel against $115.95 a barrel a session earlier, showing a decrease of 0.85 percent.

The OPEC Reference Basket of Crudes (ORB) is made up of Saharan Blend, Girassol, Djeno, Zafiro, Rabi Light, Iran Heavy, Basra Light, Kuwait Export, Es Sider, Bonny Light, Arab Light, Murban and Merey. Arab Light was available at $111.65 a barrel with an increase of 0.11 percent and the price of Russian Sokol inched up to $101.17 a barrel with a 0.01 percent increase.

European Council President Charles Michel said on Wednesday that he is confident that an agreement can be reached to ban Russian oil before the council’s next meeting on May 30. However, Hungary remains a stumbling block to the unanimous support needed for EU sanctions.