Oil prices rise modestly amid supply concerns

New York: Oil prices reversed earlier losses to end higher on Monday as concerns over supply risks gripped the market.

The West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for June delivery added 48 cents, or 0.5 per cent, to settle at 105.17 U.S. dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude for July delivery increased 44 cents, or 0.4 per cent, to close at 107.58 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange. Earlier in the session, both crude benchmarks dropped with the WTI trading as low as 100.28 dollars a barrel.

Oil prices "have seen days of gains and losses alternating almost like clockwork," because "influential factors are cancelling each other out," Carsten Fritsch, energy analyst at Commerzbank Research, said in a note on Monday.

Concerns over supply risks continue to play a role, as the European Union appears to be moving towards an oil embargo against Russia, he said.

According to media reports last week, German representatives to EU institutions lifted objections to a full embargo of Russian supplies provided Berlin was given enough time to find alternative supplies.

For the week ending Friday, the U.S. crude standard and Brent climbed 2.6 per cent and 2.5 per cent, respectively.