On Friday, oil prices reacted quickly to the United States’ decision to fire missiles at a Syrian government airbase just two days after President Bashar al-Assad launched a poison gas attack that killed hundreds of Syrian civilians. This marks the one of the toughest U.S. actions in Syria’s civil war that has now spanned six years.
Earlier, oil prices neared their one-month high before eventually settling down by midday trading. As of 12:02 PM EST, Brent crude futures are up 0.67% to $55.26 per barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures are up 0.97% to $52.20 per barrel.
Even though Syria has limited oil production—the country only makes 0.04% of global oil supplies—it’s located in the middle of one of the biggest petroleum-producing regions on the world. Syria borders Iraq, which is OPEC’s second-largest member, and other producing giants like Iran and Saudi Arabia are very close by. And, of close, it’s ongoing civil war involves two other major crude producers: the U.S. and Russia.
The release of weaker-than-expected monthly U.S. employment figures, however, played a large role in bringing down oil’s sharp gains. In March, only 98,000 new jobs were created, which is well below the 175,000 jobs expected by analysts. The unemployment rate fell further than expected as well, to 4.5%, the lowest rate seen since May 2007.
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Here's How Oil Prices Reacted After the U.S. Missile Strike in Syria
On Friday, oil prices reacted quickly to the United States’ decision to fire missiles at a Syrian government airbase just two days after President Bashar al-Assad launched a poison gas attack that killed hundreds of Syrian civilians. This marks the one of the toughest U.S. actions in Syria’s civil war that has now spanned six years.
Earlier, oil prices neared their one-month high before eventually settling down by midday trading. As of 12:02 PM EST, Brent crude futures are up 0.67% to $55.26 per barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures are up 0.97% to $52.20 per barrel.
Even though Syria has limited oil production—the country only makes 0.04% of global oil supplies—it’s located in the middle of one of the biggest petroleum-producing regions on the world. Syria borders Iraq, which is OPEC’s second-largest member, and other producing giants like Iran and Saudi Arabia are very close by. And, of close, it’s ongoing civil war involves two other major crude producers: the U.S. and Russia.
The release of weaker-than-expected monthly U.S. employment figures, however, played a large role in bringing down oil’s sharp gains. In March, only 98,000 new jobs were created, which is well below the 175,000 jobs expected by analysts. The unemployment rate fell further than expected as well, to 4.5%, the lowest rate seen since May 2007.
Zacks’ Best Private Investment Ideas
While we are happy to share many article like this on the website, our best recommendations and most in-depth research are not available to the public.
Starting today, and for the next month, you can follow all Zacks’ private buys and sells in real time. Our experts cover all kinds of trades: value, momentum, ETFs, stocks under $10, stocks that corporate insiders are buying up, and companies that are about to report positive earnings surprises. You can even look inside exclusive portfolios that are normally closed to new investors. Click here for Zacks’ private trades>>