Syria worries push crude price to highest since January

NEW YORK  — Oil rose to the highest level since January amid concerns about a possible escalation in Syria’s civil war.
Benchmark oil for July delivery rose $1.16 cents to close at $97.85 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Oil finished the week with a gain of $1.82 a barrel, or 1.9 percent.
President Barack Obama’s decision, revealed Thursday, to provide some weapons to rebels fighting the forces of Syrian President Bashar Assad came after the White House said it had convincing evidence that Assad’s regime — which has been supported by Russia, Iran and Lebanon’s Hezbollah — had used chemical weapons against the opposition.
The Middle East is a key source of crude oil and important transit routes cross the region, so conflicts which threaten disruptions in crude production or supply usually push oil prices higher.

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