Today, oil prices rose by about 2 percent, to the highest level in a week, after the Federal Reserve (the US central bank) raised interest rates. Brent crude futures rose $1.37, or 1.8%, to $76.69 a barrel upon settlement, while US West Texas Intermediate crude ended trading up $1.23, or 1.8%, to $70.90, the highest closing level since March 14. The Federal Reserve raised interest rates by 25 basis points, to 5 percent, the highest level since 2007, but indicated that it was about to pause raising borrowing costs to higher levels in light of the recent turmoil in financial markets. The prices of West Texas Intermediate and Brent crude fell last week to their lowest levels since 2021, amid fears that banking sector turmoil would lead to a global recession and reduce oil demand, but the recent rescue deal for the troubled Swiss bank Credit Suisse led to a recovery in oil prices. .
