Oil prices fell on Wednesday as a stronger U.S. dollar limited demand for greenback-denominated crude, though the rising risks of supply disruptions amid the intensifying conflict in the Red Sea curbed the losses.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures , or WTI, fell 43 cents, or 0.59%, to $71.97 a barrel.
The stronger dollar reduces demand for dollar-denominated oil for buyers paying in other currencies.
British oil major Shell suspended shipments through the Red Sea after the U.S. and UK strikes began, but U.S. producer Chevron is maintaining its Red Sea routes.
"While oil benchmarks may not reflect the Red Sea attacks, the realized price for oil and oil products for consumers has increased given the disruption to trade flows through the Red Sea and Suez Canal," Vivek Dhar, director of mining and energy commodities strategist at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, said in a note.
Persons:
Brent, WTI, Daniel Hynes, Vivek Dhar
Organizations:
greenback, Global, Brent, . West Texas, U.S, U.S . Federal Reserve, ANZ Bank, Shell, Chevron, Commonwealth Bank of Australia
Locations:
U.S, Iran, Yemen, Red, Suez