Oil and natural gas prices see-sawed as global stocks fell on Monday after a US push to ban Russian crude faced German resistance, leaving markets rattled over the risk of energy sanctions cascading through the economy.
On a day of extraordinary volatility, the international benchmark Brent crude oil surged to a high of $139 per barrel — a level last hit 14 years ago — before falling back to settle at $123.21, a 4.3 per cent increase for the day.
Oil leapt after US President Joe Biden’s administration signalled it was open to a freeze on Russian oil imports, setting aside initial reservations over the hit to consumers. But the price fell back after Germany’s chancellor Olaf Scholz expressed reluctance to restrict trade of “essential importance” to Europe’s economy.