Rising Oil Prices Mean First Monthly Gain Since July

The Globe and Mail reported that the rise in crude oil prices Friday will put Brent and US futures on track for their first monthly gain since June 2014. This gain is also supported by the improving demand outlook and supply outages in OPEC countries. The spread between Brent and U.S. crude widened to $12.80 a barrel Friday, which is the highest Brent premium since January 2014.

As quoted in the market news:

U.S. April crude was up 75 cents at $48.92 a barrel, needing a finish above $48.24 to post a February gain.

Brent April crude was up $1.51 (U.S.) at $61.56 a barrel at 11:54 a.m. ET, on pace to post a 16-per-cent monthly gain, the first monthly rise since June. Brent’s more pronounced gains this month have been fueled by disruptions to production and exports from Libya and Iraq in recent weeks, contributing to tightness in the physical market in the Mediterranean.

Also supportive to Brent, Statoil has shut its Statfjord C platform in the North Sea after discovering cracks in the flare tower.

Click here to read the full Globe and Mail report.