Brent crude settled down 24 cents, or 0.3per cent, to US$81.75 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was down 56 cents, or 0.7per cent, at US$78.90 a barrel. Brent gained 5.2per cent, while WTI gained 5per cent in the first week of the year, with prices at their highest since late November, spurred on by the supply concerns. The protests began in Kazakhstan's oil-rich western regions after state price caps on butane and propane were removed on New Year's Day. U.S. oil rigs rose one to 481 this week, their highest since April 2020, energy services firm Baker Hughes Co said in its closely followed report. [RIG-USA-BHI], [RIG-OL-USA-BHI]While the Omicron coronavirus variant is rapidly taking hold, demand-side concerns are easing amid rising evidence that it is less severe than previous variants.

Source: Libya Today January 07, 2022 18:39 UTC