Oil prices were mixed in the early Asian trade today as rebels seized parts of Libya’s capital and the fate of leader Muammar Gaddafi hung in the balance.
New York’s main contract, light sweet crude for September delivery, was up 82 cents to $83.08 a barrel from Friday’s close in New York and Brent North Sea crude for October delivery dropped $1.59 to $107.03.
“This is really the main news event,” Mr Victor Shum, an analyst with energy consultancy Purvin and Gertz in Singapore, said of the situation unravelling in Libya.
Libyan rebels surged into Tripoli yesterday in a final drive to oust Mr Gaddafi as they seized swathes of the capital including symbolic Green Square and arresting the strongman’s son, Mr Seif al-Islam.
However, senior rebel figure Mahmud Jibril said there were still pockets of resistance in and around Tripoli and warned his forces to be cautious.