Oil prices increased in New York, after the US Federal Reserve announced its plans of continuing with its relaxed monetary policy in order to bolster the US economy. WTI crude future for June delivery rose by 0.55 percent at USD $ 113.38 a barrel. Brent future increased by 0.38 percent to USD $ 125.61 a barrel in London.
The Fed chairman, Ben Bernanke, announced that the central bank plans on continuing its Quantitative Easing Program of purchasing US Treasury bonds worth USD $ 600 billion till June, and of maintaining the overnight borrowing rate to banks between o and o.25 percent. This announcement signaled further depreciation of the US Dollar, thereby increasing the demand of all commodities.
Meanwhile, Brent advanced on grounds of the continuing unrest in the Middle East, with protests spreading to Syria, Bahrain and Oman, along with the continuing stalemate in Libya. The Middle East crisis is making investors jittery about a possible effect on oil supplies from that region of the world, thereby leading to the price hike.