By Robert Harvey LONDON, Dec 26 (Reuters) – Oil prices were stable on Friday as investors weighed potential supply risks from developing geopolitical tensions in a thin post-Christmas session, after the U.S. carried out airstrikes against Islamic State militants in Nigeria and put more economic pressure on Venezuelan oil. Brent crude futures fell 2 cents to $62.22 per barrel by 1307 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was up 6 cents at $58.41. The U.S. on Thursday carried out a strike against Islamic State militants in northwest Nigeria's Sokoto state in coordination with the Nigerian government, U.S. President Donald Trump said. "Nigerian strikes touted by Trump are targeting Islamic State and not specifically impacting any crude pipelines or oil terminals. Thus traders are staying on the sidelines in this thin liquidity market on Boxing Day," said June Goh, senior oil market analyst at Sparta Commodities. Major oil producer Nigeria's oilfields and export infrastructure are mainly located in the south of the country. The White House ordered its military forces to focus on a "quarantine" of Venezuelan oil for at least the next two months, indicating Washington is currently more interested in using economic rather than military means to pressure Caracas. Supply disruptions have helped oil prices rebound in recent sessions from their near five-year low on December 16. Nonetheless, prices are on course for their steepest annual decline since 2020, with Brent and WTI down 17% and 19% respectively versus the final close of 2024, as rising oil output has caused concerns of an oil glut heading into next year. "For now, oil prices remain supported from export disruptions in Venuezuela and Kazakhstan," said UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo. "We still need to see if the Kremlin supports the latest peace plan." Investors will also be watching for developments in the Russia-Ukraine peace process and the possible impact on future oil prices, as a peace agreement could lead to the removal of international sanctions against Russia's oil sector. Russian President Vladimir Putin's foreign policy aide spoke to members of the U.S. administration after Moscow received proposals about a possible peace deal, the Kremlin said on Friday, after the Kommersant newspaper reported that Putin told business leaders Russia might be open to a territory swap. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Friday that a lot can be decided before the New Year. Axios reported the two leaders will meet on Sunday at Mar-a-Lago, citing a Ukrainian official, though Reuters could not immediately verify the statement. (Reporting by Robert Harvey in London and Sudarshan Varadhan in Singapore; Editing byMuralikumar Anantharaman and Joe Bavier)
(The article has been published through a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has been published verbatim. Liability lies with original publisher.)
