Summary The US benchmark, West Texas Intermediate for delivery in June, added 82 cents to $101.08 a barrel.
LONDON (AFP) - World oil prices rebounded Friday on supply risks owing to the possibility of a full-blown armed conflict in Ukraine, as pro-Moscow rebels press on with disputed independence referendums.
Brent North Sea crude for June won 73 cents to trade at $108.77 a barrel approaching midday in London.
"Oil prices are on the up on concerns about the prospects for supply disruption if the crisis in Ukraine escalates further," said analyst Ishaq Siddiqi at trading firm ETX Capital.
Despite a call from Russian President Vladimir Putin to postpone the vote to ease tensions, pro-Kremlin rebels in Ukraine have vowed that independence referendums would go ahead as planned this Sunday on May 11.
There are fears the country could erupt in fresh violence on Friday when both it and Russia celebrate the Soviet victory in World War II.
"We expect political turmoil in Ukraine to continue in the run-up to, and probably also in the aftermath of, the presidential elections on May 25," Dutch bank ABN AMRO said in a note.
Desmond Chua, market analyst at CMC Markets in Singapore, said there would be a "build-up in risk premium" ahead of the planned May 11 referendums in eastern Ukraine.
Analysts said energy investors were jittery also after Russia on Thursday ordered Ukraine to pay upfront for all its future natural gas deliveries because of billions of dollars in outstanding debts.
The largely-anticipated announcement imperils supplies to a large swathe of the European Union because nearly 15 percent of all Russian gas consumed by the 28-nation bloc transits through Ukraine.
A full-blown armed conflict in the ex-Soviet state could disrupt supplies transported between Eastern Europe and the West and send energy prices rocketing.
