Oil prices top $120 per barrel on Middle East unrest

April 4, 2011 Share Print 0

Brent crude topped $120 a barrel Monday due to supply concerns stemming from unrest in the Middle East. Futures for Brent Crude rose $2.36 to $121 a barrel — the highest levels since before the onset of the global financial crisis in September 2008.

Meanwhile U.S. crude settled up 53 cents at $108.47 a barrel, the highest close since September 2008.

Investors expect demand for oil may grow on signs that the U.S. economy is improving. Yet ongoing conflict in Libya and violence in Yemen could threaten supply in the Middle East just as demand surges.

Source:Ã‚Â Reuters

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Alfonso Esparza

Senior Currency Analyst at Market Pulse

Alfonso Esparza specializes in macro forex strategies for North American and major currency pairs. Upon joining OANDA in 2007, Alfonso Esparza established the MarketPulseFX blog and he has since written extensively about central banks and global economic and political trends. Alfonso has also worked as a professional currency trader focused on North America and emerging markets. He has been published by The MarketWatch, Reuters, the Wall Street Journal and The Globe and Mail, and he also appears regularly as a guest commentator on networks including Bloomberg and BNN. He holds a finance degree from the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education (ITESM) and an MBA with a specialization on financial engineering and marketing from the University of Toronto.