Oil surges nearly 6% after Israel begins ground raids into Gaza

Oil prices surged almost 6% on Friday, led by Brent, which saw its largest weekly gain since February. The market reacted to Israel's shift from an air war to ground operations in Gaza against Hamas. Brent settled at .89 per barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude reached .69 per barrel. The Middle East conflict raised concerns about oil supply in the region, with Iran's Oil Minister predicting prices reaching 0 per barrel. Saudi Arabia postponed normalization plans with Israel as the conflict intensified. U.S. sanctions on Russian oil tankers could further affect global supply. OPEC maintained its demand growth forecast.

Original Article: Oil surges nearly 6% after Israel begins ground raids into Gaza