Oil prices climbed sharply on Friday as tensions between Russia and Ukraine intensified. “From an energy standpoint, this could be a seismic event,” said Phil Flynn, senior market analyst at The Price Futures Group. Russia is not only a major oil producer but Europe, in their rush to get off of fossil fuels, has “become more dependent on Russia as major source for their energy.” February West Texas Intermediate crude climbed by $1.70, or 2.1%, to settle at $83.82 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. For the week, prices based on the front-month contract climbed 6.2%, according to FactSet data.
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