Global oil price highest this year

Global oil prices hit their highest for the year yesterday after a disruption in Libyan crude exports, higher selling prices for Saudi oil and a weaker dollar that tends to inflate commodity prices.

Since April’s price rally of between 20% and 25%, oil bulls have been pushing the market up on the notion that a supply glut was easing from tightening world production despite continuous build-ups in US crude stockpiles.

UK Brent, the more widely-used oil benchmark, hit a 2015 high of $68.40 a barrel, trading at $68.06 by late afternoon, for a gain of $1.61 on the day.