West Texas Intermediate and Brent crude oil futures traveled in opposite directions for the first time in five days as the trade week came to a close, according to Bloomberg.
President Obama said on Thursday he is sending about 300 military advisors to aid Iraqi forces against Sunni Islamic militants. He did not rule out additional steps in the oil-rich nation, whose troubles are causing concerns about the integrity of supply lines out of the Middle East.
"The spread has surged this week and it looks like folks just want to profit from their bets," analyst and broker Gene McGillian with Tradition Energy in Stamford, Connecticut told the news source on Friday. "It appears to be spread related and nothing else."
At 9:53 a.m. on Friday, WTI crude oil futures rose 0.61 percent, a 65-cent rise to $107.08 per barrel. At 9:54 a.m., Brent crude oil futures dipped 0.25 percent, a 29-cent loss to $114.77 per barrel.
Reuters reports international oil companies are evacuating staff members from Northern Iraq refineries. Oil refineries in the southern region of the nation, which ship more than 2.5 million barrels per day, have not been impacted by the fighting.
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