Crude Oil Hits $82 A Barrel Amid Kazakhstan Unrest

Crude oil prices rose in London Friday morning, as an uprising in Kazakhstan raised fears of disruptions in crude supplies from OPEC+ producers at a time when Libyan output has fallen.

Brent crude futures rose 0.6 percent to $82.47 per barrel on Tuesday, following a 1.5 percent rise on Monday.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures rose above $80 per barrel in the previous session, following a 2.1 percent gain the day before.

As the political situation in Libya deteriorates and has an impact on oil output, oil prices have been primarily influenced by market jitters caused by the escalation of unrest in Kazakhstan.

Russia dispatched paratroopers on Thursday to put down a three-day-old uprising in Kazakhstan. Protests erupted in Kazakhstan’s oil-rich western regions after the government lifted state price caps on butane and propane on New Year’s Day.

Oil prices increased by up to 6% in the first week of the year, as supply concerns outweighed concerns about the spread of the Omicron coronavirus variant.

Russia and its allies, dubbed OPEC+, do not have enough oil to meet rising demand.

OPEC output increased by only 70,000 barrels per day in December, far less than the 253,000 barrels per day allowed under the OPEC+ supply agreement, which restored output that had been cut in 2020 due to collapse on COVID-19 lockdowns.

Libyan production fell from 1.3 million barrels per day last year to 729,000 barrels per day as a result of a pipeline maintenance project.