Oil prices rise by more than 2% after Ukrainian attack targets Russian facilities in the Black Sea

Oil prices rose sharply on Friday after Russian oil facilities were attacked by Ukrainian drones in the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk, raising concerns about supplies and price support that had been under pressure over the past days.

Brent crude futures were up $1.34, or 2.13%, at $64.35 a barrel.

US West Texas Intermediate crude rose $1.40, or 2.39%, to $60.09 a barrel.

The Russian Krasnodar region’s operations command said on Telegram that fragments from drones hit residential buildings and an oil depot inside a recharging complex, as well as other coastal facilities.

The rally followed a session in which crude was relatively stable on Thursday, despite growing concerns about imminent US sanctions on Russian oil.

Those fears had pushed prices down by more than $2 in the previous session.

The United States has already imposed sanctions on Russian companies Lukoil and Rosneft, as part of pressure to push Moscow to engage in peace talks with Ukraine.

Starting November 21, both companies will be banned.

JPMorgan noted in a recent report that about 1.4 million barrels per day of Russian oil — nearly a third of its maritime exports — are among the pending shipments on tankers, as unloading operations have slowed due to sanctions.

The bank predicted that it would become more difficult to unload shipments after the sanctions go into full effect on November 21.

Oil prices fell in Wednesday’s session after OPEC reported that global supply would slightly exceed demand in 2026, a shift from previous forecasts of an expected supply shortage.

On the US data front, the Energy Information Administration reported a larger-than-expected increase in crude oil inventories last week, with inventories rising by 6.4 million barrels to 427.6 million barrels, compared to expectations of an increase of 1.96 million barrels.

Gasoline and distillate inventories, on the other hand, fell but less than expected.