Oil prices traded above $97 a barrel today after attacks on US diplomatic missions and the killing of the US ambassador to Libya sparked new worries about unrest in the Middle East.
By early afternoon in Europe, benchmark crude was up 25 cents at $97.26 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
The contract had fallen 16 cents yesterday to end at $97.01 a barrel in New York.
In London, Brent crude was down 8 cents at $115.25 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.
Analysts said the while impact of the attacks on oil prices had been subdued thus far, risks were on the rise.
Oil traders were also awaiting the end of a two-day Federal Reserve policy meeting at which central bankers were widely expected to announce new steps to help the flagging US economy.
Should the Fed fail to announce the awaited measures, "we may see crude prices unwind some of their recent gains as the dollar corrects higher," analysts said.
A stronger dollar makes crude more expensive and a less attractive investment for traders using other currencies.
