Rising tensions in oil-rich northern Iraq keep crude prices elevated

Oil prices continued to climb Tuesday amid fighting in Iraq that threatened production from northern Iraq and as the relationship between the United States and Iran risked more strain.

November West Texas Intermediate crude CLX7, +0.31%  was up 29 cents, or 0.6%, to $52.16 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, aiming toward its highest settlement in some three weeks, according to FactSet data.

Brent crude for December LCOZ7, +0.33%  gained 28 cents, or 0.5%, to $58.09.

Iraqi forces on Monday clashed with fighters from Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdish region in the oil-rich province of Kirkuk, in a continuing standoff over Kurdish independence. The violence followed a referendum late September in which the Kurds voted overwhelmingly in favor of independence, in defiance of the central government in Baghdad and other regional powers.
more detail at:   http://www.marketwatch.com/story/rising-tensions-in-oil-rich-northern-iraq-keep-crude-prices-elevated-2017-10-17