Oil Prices Steady as Hurricane Laura Makes Gulf Coast Landfall

Pump jacks draw crude oil from the Long Beach Oil Field under Discovery Well Park in Signal Hill, Calif., on March 9, 2020. David McNew/AFP via Getty Images

LONDON— Oil prices were broadly stable on Thursday as a massive hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico made landfall in the heart of the U.S. oil industry, forcing oil rigs and refineries to shut down.

Brent crude futures for October, which expire on Friday, rose 6 cents, or, 0.1 percent to $45.70 a barrel by 0942 GMT (5:42 am). The more active November Brent contract was virtually flat at $46.17 per barrel.