Oil rises and natural gas surges 8% as Russia orders troops to Ukraine

Energy prices, notably natural gas and crude, climbed sharply, amid the threat of a full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russia.

Price action

• Against that backdrop, Brent oil
  BRN00,
  +1.77%,
  the international benchmark, was trading over 2% higher at $97.35 a barrel, after the April contract
  BRNJ22,
  +1.77%
  finished 2% higher on Monday, marking the largest daily gain for a front-month contract since Feb. 14, according to Dow Jones Market Data. 

• West Texas Intermediate crude
  CL.1,
  +3.22%

  CL00,
  +3.07%
  for March delivery
  CLH22,
  +3.22%
   was trading $2.38, or 2.6%, to reach around $92.60 a barrel, following a 0.8% slide on Friday, contributing to a 2.2% weekly loss ahead of its expiration at Tuesday’s settlement. Markets in the U.S. on Monday were closed in observance Presidents Day.

• Natural gas
  NG00,
  +7.54%
  was trading over 8% higher, up 35 cents, at $4.78 per million British thermal units.

Market drivers

Russian President Vladimir Putin, in a speech on Monday, said that he recognized the independence of pro-Moscow separatist factions in Luhansk and Donetsk, Ukraine and was ordering troops into the breakaway regions as what he referred to as peacekeepers.