WTI crude touches $100, Brent above $105

Oil drilling rigs

Oil prices extended gains on Thursday, with WTI crude crossing $100 a barrel, while Brent crude soared past $105 as Russia announced military action against Ukraine, sparking fears of a disruption to the region’s energy exports.

The international benchmark Brent crude was up 8.66%, or $8.39, at $105.23 per barrel, at 1.20 pm Makkah time.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose 8.59% to $100.01 a barrel.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba described the Russian decisions as a comprehensive invasion as Moscow confirmed the destruction of Ukraine’s anti-aircraft defense system.

Ukraine also announced the killing of 40 soldiers and dozens of civilians in the Russian attack.

Russia is a major energy supplier, and Europe relies on Moscow for about a quarter of its oil supplies and a third of its natural gas imports.

The escalation of military action in Ukraine coincides with a global failure with regard to the supply of oil to meet the levels of demand, which continues to rise in conjunction with the recovery of the global economy from the coronavirus pandemic.

Meanwhile, data from the American Petroleum Institute showed an increase in crude oil inventories in the United States by about six million barrels during the week ended Feb. 18.

The Energy Information Administration will release official US inventory data later today.