WTI oil price nears $100 mark, global oil supply in focus

22 February 2011 22 February 2011

BonTrade

WTI oil prices are back near $100 a barrel this morning and could soon trade higher as Middle Eastern tensions have investors concerned about oil supply from the Middle East, which accounts for 40 percent of global supply.

Latest WTI Oil Price

US Light crude oil futures for April 2011 delivery was trading at $97.80 a barrel, 07.00 GMT this morning on the NYMEX, after surging higher in trading on Monday.

Japan Concerns – First of Many

Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan on Tuesday summoned his key ministers for an emergency meeting today as the impact of the price rises on Japan’s economy, which relies on imported oil, 90 percent of which comes from the Middle East.

Japan buys 30 percent of its crude oil from Saudi Arabia and 25 percent from the United Arab Emirates, and has not purchased oil from Libya in years.

However, concerns over supplies from the region have heightened as pro-democracy protests flare up across the region, with Tunisia and Egypt seeing their leaders toppled while Yemen, Iran and Bahrain have also been hit by unrest.