Investing.com - Crude futures rose on Friday as a bloody Iraq insurgency continued to stoke fears shipments from the oil-rich country will be affected, while the U.S. said it was sending military advisors to the troubled country in an effort to end the violence.
In the New York Mercantile Exchange, West Texas Intermediate crude oil for delivery in August traded at $106.75 a barrel during U.S. trading, up 0.66%. New York-traded oil futures hit a session low of $105.82 a barrel and a high of $106.77 a barrel.
The August contract settled up 0.44% at $106.05 a barrel on Thursday.
Nymex oil futures were likely to find support at $105.11 a barrel, Thursday's low, and resistance at $106.84 a barrel, the high from June 13.
Iraqi security forces fought with Sunni militants for control of a 300,000 barrel-per-day refinery on Thursday, which pressured prices higher by stoking supply concerns.
Still, many of the country's major oilfields remain far south of the fighting, which kept prices steady.
U.S. President Barack Obama said on Thursday that he was sending up to 300 U.S. military advisers to Iraq and added he was prepared to take "targeted" military action later if deemed necessary.
Iraq produced approximately 3.5 million barrels a day of oil last month, making it OPEC’s second-biggest oil producer behind Saudi Arabia.
Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange in London, Brent oil futures for August delivery were down 0.40% and trading at US$114.60 a barrel, while the spread between the Brent and U.S. crude contracts stood at US$7.85 a barrel.