Crude oil futures traded higher on Friday morning due to the escalation in hostilities between Russia and Ukraine.
At 9.54 am on Friday, January Brent oil futures were at $74.36, up by 0.18 per cent, and January crude oil futures on WTI (West Texas Intermediate) were at $70.27, up by 0.24 per cent.
December crude oil futures were trading at ₹5,952 on Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) during the initial hour of trading on Friday against the previous close of ₹5,905, up by 0.80 per cent, and January futures were trading at ₹5,942 against the previous close of ₹5,901, up by 0.69 per cent.
Russia said on Thursday that it fired a new ballistic missile known as ‘Oreshnik’ (the hazel) at the Ukrainian military facility. Ukraine had earlier said that Russia had fired an intercontinental ballistic missile.
Vladimir Putin, President of Russia, said on Thursday that the Ukraine war is growing into a global conflict after the Western nations permitted Ukraine to attack Russia with their weapons.
Russia is one of the major producers of crude oil. Market players fear that the escalation in tensions between Russia and Ukraine could impact the supply of crude oil from the region. Ukraine had attacked Russian energy infrastructure with drones in the past.
Meanwhile, market is keenly waiting for the outcome of OPEC+ meeting on December 1. Some media reports said that OPEC’s plans to increase crude oil output may be further postponed. OPEC+ had planned gradual output increases for 2024 and 2025, starting last October. However, the decline in the global demand for the commodity had forced OPEC+ to delay this plan.
December natural gas futures were trading at ₹301.20 on MCX during the initial hour of trading on Friday against the previous close of ₹292.30, up by 3.04 per cent.
On the National Commodities and Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX), December turmeric (farmer polished) contracts were trading at ₹14,230 in the initial hour of trading on Friday against the previous close of ₹14,352, down by 0.85 per cent.
December dhaniya futures were trading at ₹7,884 on NCDEX in the initial hour of trading on Friday against the previous close of ₹7,856, up by 0.36 per cent.
