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Libyan rebels stop oil production
Brent crude oil futures hit a 2.5-year high of $123 per barrel yesterday as rebels said that they had been forced to suspend production in Libya’s eastern oil fields due to a sustained assault by Muammer Gaddafi’s forces. The hiatus means that rebel forces have only managed to oversee the extraction and export of one tanker’s worth of oil during their time in charge of the country’s rich eastern oil reserves, although they have seen off two tankers that were filling previous orders. Rebels are hoping to use oil exports to fund the ongoing war against Gaddafi.