Oil prices maintained their gains on Monday due to concerns that an escalation in the Middle East could disrupt regional oil supplies. At the same time, upcoming U.S. interest rate cuts will boost global economic expectations and fuel demand.

Brent crude futures rose to $80.02 per barrel, while U.S. crude increased by $1 to $75.83 per barrel. Earlier in the day, Brent crude futures had risen by 37 cents or 0.5% to $79.39 per barrel by 23:00 GMT, while U.S. crude futures rose by 36 cents or 0.5% to $75.19 per barrel.

Tony Sycamore, market analyst at IG, noted in a memo that “Israel’s preemptive strike on Lebanon over the weekend to prevent an imminent Hezbollah attack may ensure oil prices rise this morning, with West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude appearing to extend its initial recovery to $77.50.”

Both benchmarks rose by more than 2% on Friday after U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell supported the idea of starting interest rate cuts soon. Analysts at ANZ Bank stated in a memo, “The potential for easing monetary policy has boosted sentiment in the commodities market,” adding that they expect the Federal Reserve to implement a gradual series of interest rate cuts. Oil prices had fallen last week as fuel demand was impacted by weak outlooks for major economies.