Crude oil futures ended higher on Thursday, extending their previous sessions’ gains, on escalating unrest in OPEC+ oil producer Kazakhstan and supply outages in Libya. Russia sent paratroopers into Kazakhstan on Thursday to help quell a countrywide uprising after deadly violence spread across the tightly controlled former Soviet state. Kazakhstan produces about 1.6 million barrels of oil per day. However, there are no indications that oil production has been hit so far. Meanwhile, as a result of disruptions due to pipeline maintenance work and oilfield shutdowns, oil output has dropped by over 500,000 barrels per day in Libya. Further, hopes that the Omicron variant of the coronavirus will not significantly impact global oil demand also contributed to the increase in prices.
Benchmark crude oil futures for February delivery surged $1.61 or 2.1 percent to settle at $79.46 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude for March delivery rose $1.2 or 1.5 percent to settle at $82.00 a barrel on London's Intercontinental Exchange.