Oil prices fell Friday after spiking the previous day as Saudi Arabian jets struck rebel targets in Yemen, sparking supply fears in the crude-rich Middle East.
Brent North Sea crude for delivery in May sank 63 cents to $58.56 a barrel in London midday deals.
US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for May slid 81 cents to $50.62 a barrel.
“Oil prices … are shedding some of the strong gains they had achieved over the two previous days,” said Commerzbank analyst Carsten Fritsch.
“It would appear that the initial panicky response to Saudi Arabia’s military intervention in Yemen is giving way to a more sober assessment of the situation.”
Prices rose sharply on Wednesday and Thursday after a Saudi Arabia-led coalition bombed Huthi Shiite rebels in support of Yemen’s embattled President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi.
WTI struck a one-month high of $52.48 and Brent jumped to a March 9 peak of $59.78 on Thursday.
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