Troops from North and South Korea began removing some landmines along their heavily fortified border on Monday, the South’s defense ministry said, as part of a pact to reduce tension and build trust on the divided peninsula, Reuters reports.
Benchmark Brent crude oil futures LCOc1 rose to as much as $83.27 a barrel and were at $83.21 at 0339 GMT, up 48 cents, or 0.6 percent from their last close.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures CLc1 were up 32 cents, or 0.4 percent, at $73.57 a barrel.
WTI prices were supported by a report on Friday of a stagnant rig count in the United States, which points to a slowdown in U.S. crude production C-OUT-T-EIA, which now rivals top producers Russia and Saudi Arabia.