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Oil rises slightly as Libyan unrest continues

Oil rises slightly as Libyan unrest continues

Oil prices are slightly higher as traders await a government report on inventories, while unrest in Libya shows no signs of easing.

Benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude for April delivery rose 38 cents to $105.40 a barrel in Wednesday morning trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

In London, Brent crude added $1.77 at $114.83 per barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.

The Energy Department is expected to release its weekly report on U.S. inventories of oil, gasoline and distillates later in the day.

About 1.6 million barrels of crude production has been shut down in Libya. Although OPEC nations have said they will cover any shortfall from Libya, traders are concerned political unrest could spread to Saudi Arabia, the world's largest crude exporter.