Brent oil trading at $108, Kuwait strike supports crude prices

11 October 2011 11 October 2011

LorieFuller31

Brent oil prices open today’s trading session at $108 a barrel as a strike in Kuwait that is affecting oil shipments will support the price of oil and Brent crude oil futures have now seen 4 straight days of gains.

Latest Brent Oil Price

In London, Brent crude oil futures for November 2011 delivery was trading at $108.52 a barrel, 08.20 GMT this morning on the ICE Futures Exchange.

Kuwait Strike Supports Oil Prices

Oil traders and investors were closely watching for any supply disruption from Kuwait after a strike by a customs union shut ports and halted vessel traffic.

Kuwait is one of the top five OPEC producers and accounted for about 7.7 percent of the group’s overall crude output in 2010.

Customs employees in Kuwait went on strike for a second day and threatened to block oil exports in a protest over wages, a customs union official said.

“Late yesterday, about six tankers needed permission to leave the ports but it wasn’t given to them. We’re not going to stop our strike until the Cabinet itself issues a statement supporting our demands.” Fahad al-Ajmi, a union board member, said in a telephone interview from Kuwait today.

The strike, which involves at least 4,000 workers, has also disrupted operations at the country’s main airport, sea ports and border crossings, according to al-Ajmi.

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