US oil surges amid Middle East tensions

Oil prices have traded mixed, with the main US contract gaining 11 per cent and Brent holding stable amid tensions in the Middle East.

Oil prices have traded mixed, with the main US contract gaining 11 per cent and Brent holding stable amid geopolitical tensions in the oil-rich Middle East.

US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for November leaped $US1.01 to close at $US93.54 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Brent North Sea crude for delivery in November, the global benchmark, was unchanged from Thursday's close at $US97.00 a barrel in London trade.

"Geopolitical concerns are adding some support to prices heading into the weekend," said Matt Smith, an analyst at Schneider Electric.

Investors were focused on US-led air strikes against jihadists in the oil-rich Middle East. The air strikes in Syria disrupted the Islamic State group's lucrative oil-pumping operations, which experts say typically earn the jihadists between $US1 million and $US3 million in sales a day.

The market also weighed fresh data on US economic growth in the second quarter that was revised upward by 0.4 percentage point to a healthy annual rate of 4.6 per cent, the strongest pace since late 2011 in the world's largest consumer of crude oil.


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