By Gina Lee

Investing.com – Oil was down on Wednesday morning in Asia. Due to geopolitical problems in Russia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a possible tight supply gave oil a fourth day of gains.

The price of Brent rose by 1.20%, to $88.56, at 11:26 ET (11:26 GMT), and then jumped by 1.28% to $85.92. Brent futures and WTI futures are close to their highs since October 2014.

Botas, the Turkish state pipeline operator said Tuesday it had cut oil flows after an explosion. However, its cause remains unknown. This pipeline transports crude crude from Iraq to Turkey’s Ceyhan port, which is the largest oil producer within the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries.

This is because of a tighter market. However, fuel demand has held up well despite the global spread of the micron COVID-19 variant.

Tensions among the U.S., Russia, and the UAE (OPEC’s third largest producer), contributed to worries about supply.

To resolve tensions regarding Ukraine, U.S. Secretary Antony Blinken and Sergey Lavrov will meet in Geneva Friday. In the meantime, Tuesday’s call by the UAE for a meeting at the United Nations Security Council was made in response to Monday’s Houthi attack on Abu Dhabi.

This tension and potential supply disruptions come at a time when OPEC+ and its allies are struggling to reach their target of adding 400,000 barrels of oil per day each month.

OANDA analyst Edward Moya stated that OPEC+ was not meeting their production quotas. “Brent crude may not require much of a push in order to reach $100 a barrel if geopolitical tensions heat up,” Edward Moya, OANDA analyst said in a note.

Vivek Dhar, a Commonwealth Bank commodities analyst, stated in a note that jet fuel consumption has been rising in tandem with international flight growth. Road traffic, however, is significantly higher in 2021 than it was in 2021.

“OPEC+ supply constraints and the ongoing increase in global oil demand will likely keep oil prices well supported in coming months,” Dhar’s note added.

Investors are now waiting for, which is due late in the afternoon.