Oil prices have found some respite from a six-week sell-off as BP PLC (NYSE:BP) became the latest company to announce it was halting shipments through the Red Sea due to the “deteriorating security situation for shipping.”
The development comes amid increasing attacks on vessels in the Red Sea by Houthi militants in Yemen, according to Reuters.
On Monday, the price of the U.S. benchmark Nymex WTI contract rose 3.9% to $74.57 a barrel, but was still 22.5% lower than its peak in September. European benchmark Brent crude, rose by 3.8% to $79.47 a barrel, but remained nearly 20% lower than its September high mark.
The United States Oil Fund (NYSE:USO), an exchange traded fund that tracks the price of light sweet crude, was up 3.6% in early trade, but still lags its 2023 peak by 19%.
American Depository Receipts in BP were trading 1.2% higher in midday trading on ...