Oil prices ticked higher in early trade on Thursday as investors weighed the escalating conflict in the Middle East and the potential for disruption to crude flows, against an amply-supplied global market.
But an unexpected build in U.S. crude inventories on Wednesday helped ease some supply concerns and curbed oil price gains.
Some investors remained unfazed as global crude supplies have yet to be disrupted by unrest in the key producing region, and spare OPEC capacity tempered worries.
OPEC has enough spare oil capacity to compensate for a full loss of Iranian supply if Israel knocks out that country's facilities.
"The effectively available spare capacity might be much lower if renewed attacks on energy infrastructure on countries in the region happen," said Giovanni Staunovo, analyst at UBS.
Persons:
derek, East, Jim Simpson, Giovanni Staunovo
Organizations:
Brent, . West Texas, Energy Information Administration, ANZ, East Daley Analytics, Reuters, OPEC, UBS
Locations:
Kuwait, Saudi Arabian, Israeli, Beirut's Bachoura, Iran, Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, Gulf