Brent climbs 1.25% after Saudi crude price hike

International benchmark Brent rose 1.25% in the early American trade on track for the first profit in six sessions away from seven-week lows amid active short-covering.

The gains came after Saudi Aramco decided to raise the price of its crude exports to Asia for the third month in a row amid an outlook of strong global demand. 

In addition, tensions in the Middle East are mounting once again after Israeli forces ordered about 100 thousand Palestinians to move out of Rafah ahead of an expected assault. 

Prices

Brent rose 1.25% to $83.79 a barrel, with a session-high at $82.78, after closing down 1.1% on Friday, plumbing a seven-week trough at $82.78.  

Brent lost 6% last week, the second weekly loss in three weeks, and the largest since late January amid concerns about supply gluts in the US.

Saudi Crude 

Saudi Arabia raised the price of its crude oil exports to Asia for the third straight month according to Bloomberg, indicating confidence about increasing global demand. 

Geopolitical Tensions 

Hamas-Israel ceasefire talks stumbled once again with both sides accusing the other of ruining the agreement deliberately. 

Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu pledged not to acquiesce to international pressures, and to pursue the war in Gaza until Hamas is definitively beaten. 

The ongoing struggle in Gaza poses some threats to supplies in the Middle East, thus underpinning prices.