Crude prices rose 1 percent on Monday as Iraqi forces entered the oil-rich city of Kirkuk, seizing territory from Kurdish fighters and briefly cutting some crude output from OPEC’s second-largest producer. “We’re seeing increased geopolitical tension in the Middle East providing support in the market today, namely in Iraqi Kurdistan, and some uncertainty around Iran,” said Anthony Headrick, energy market analyst at CHS Hedging LLC in Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota. Iraqi Kurdistan briefly shut down some 350,000 barrels per day (bpd) of production from the major Bai Hassan and Avana oilfields due to security concerns. Iraq launched the operation on Sunday as the crisis between Baghdad and the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) escalated. The KRG voted for independence in a Sept. 25 referendum. Brent crude futures LCOc1 settled up 65 cents, or 1.1 percent, to $57.82 per barrel while U.S. crude ended 42 cents, or […]