Oil prices up with Iraq violence in focus

Singapore: Oil prices rose in Asian trade, with escalating violence in Iraq sharply in focus as  militants attacked the major crude producer's biggest refinery  and seized more territory.  US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for July rose 35 cents to USD 106.32 while Brent crude for August gained nine cents to USD 114.35 in late-morning trade. 

WTI has jumped by more than USD 2.0 a barrel and Brent by  over USD 4.0 since the escalation of the jihadist offensive  last week.  "The escalation of the crisis in Iraq led to a sharp  spike in crude prices," said Sanjeev Gupta, head of the  Asia-Pacific oil and gas practice at professional services  firm Ernst & Young.  "Together with the limited spare capacity due to drying  up of supplies from Libya, any further escalation of the  crises in the region can lead to a sharp spike in benchmark  prices," he said. 

Read: Iraq crisis may jack up oil prices

Sunni militants led by the Islamic State of Iraq and the  Levant (ISIL) yesterday launched an assault on the Baiji oil  refinery - Iraq's biggest - spooking international oil  markets.  Officials say security forces retain control of the  refinery, but clashes are ongoing.

Read: Sunni militants attack Iraq's largest oil refinery in Baiji 

Washington said it had not seen any major disruptions in Iraqi oil supplies as a result  of the assault.  Most of Iraq's oil infrastructure is in the far south of the country, which has so far not been affected by the now nine-day insurgency. 

Baghdad has called for US air strikes as the lightning  offensive rapidly bears down on the capital.  Fears about Iraq, the second biggest producer in the OPEC  oil cartel, offset a mixed US inventory report, analysts said.