Key Currency Exchange Rates for Friday, 2/23/18

Futures were little changed in New York after rising 3.7 percent the previous two sessions. Libya declared force majeure, a legal clause that allows the suspension of deliveries, on supplies from the Sharara field after it was blocked on Sunday, National Oil Corp. Chairman Mustafa Sanalla said. Drillers targeting crude trimmed the rig count by five to 763, the second decline this month, according to data Friday from Baker Hughes Inc. “The fragility of Libya’s production increase” was highlighted by the problem at Sharara, said Giovanni Staunovo, an analyst at UBS Group AG in Zurich. “Considering that the political situation and security issues remain unresolved, production gains can be quickly reversed.” Click Read More below for more of the story.

Global demand for oil is likely to moderate this year, as the price of crude nears $80 a barrel and many key importing nations no longer offer consumers generous fuel subsidies, the International Energy Agency said on Wednesday. Oil has risen 51 percent in the last year, driven by coordinated supply cuts and, this month, by concern over Iranian supply after the United States said it would reimpose sanctions on Tehran over its nuclear activities. Click Read More below for additional information.

Futures were little changed in New York after falling 0.8 percent Friday. Prices still capped a fifth weekly gain last week, the longest run since October 2016. The plan to boost security was reported by Al-Arabiya television on Saturday, citing the energy ministry of Saudi Arabia, the world’s top crude exporter. The pipeline resumed pumping later in the day after a brief halt. Oil has climbed about 20 percent since the start of September as global supplies tighten and speculation mounts that the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries will extend output curbs past the end of March. In the U.S., drillers last week increased the rig count by the most since June, according to Baker Hughes. “Political developments in Saudi Arabia sent bullish ripples across the energy complex,” said Stephen Brennock, an analyst at PVM Oil Associates Ltd. in London. Click Read More below for additional information.