Brent crude declined below $103 a barrel today following the latest developments in Ukraine, Libya and Iraq.
Reuters reported that Brent crude declined by $1.31 to 102.22 a barrel while US crude was down $1.06 to $96.29 a barrel.
Oil supplies from Libya have seen minor improvements. A spokesman for National Oil Corp said that oil production in Libya increased from 400,000 barrels per day (bpd) earlier in the week to 535,000 bpd on Sunday as a result of increased output at the south-western El Sharara and El Feel fields.
Oil production in the north African state is still far below the 1.4 million bpd mark it achieved in 2013 prior to a series of blockades, which drastically reduced output to as low as 200,000 bpd.
Meanwhile, violence in east Ukraine intensified as the country partially destroyed a column of armoured vehicles entering from Russia, which in turn affected the price of Brent crude.
The violence in Iraq is yet to affect oil supplies from southern ports, and production in Kurdistan, the northern region of Iraq, seems to be unaffected by the fighting as it has been able to deliver its third major cargo of crude oil, despite pressure from the country’s capital.
According to Reuters, recent months have seen low demand from refineries in Europe and Asia, affecting Brent prices.
In Europe, refinery crude runs remain below last year’s levels despite the rise seen in July against the previous month.
