SINGAPORE: Oil prices were mixed in Asian trade Wednesday after climbing in New York as concerns over a US-led military strike on Syria returned.
New York's main contract, West Texas Intermediate for delivery in October, eased 27 cents to $108.27 in afternoon trade, while Brent North Sea crude for October gained 10 cents to $115.78.
"Brent crude oil prices rallied due to limited global stocks and the support for US President (Barack) Obama's call for military intervention in Syria," Teoh Say Hwa, head of investment at Phillip Futures in Singapore, said in a note.
"Syria may not be a major oil producer but a military intervention in Syria could spread across the Middle East," she said.
Market jitters over Syria resurfaced after Republican House Speaker John Boehner and his right hand man Eric Cantor said they would support a strike against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime over its alleged use of chemical weapons.
The move was a rare gesture of unity in a divided Congress and left Obama hopeful of securing a vote for action from lawmakers next week.
Investors fear US intervention could lead to a wider conflict in the politically volatile Middle East, a key source of the world's crude oil supplies.
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