Crude prices rebounded slightly in Asian trade on Wednesday, mirroring a small hop in the euro’s value as cautious traders kept their eyes on tensions in the Korean peninsula.

New York’s main contract, light sweet crude for January, gained 43 cents to USD 81.68.

Brent North Sea crude for delivery in January added 31 cents to USD 83.56.

Slight gains in the euro’s value was providing some cheer to crude markets, said Tony Nunan, risk manager for Mitsubishi Corp in Tokyo.

The euro was trading at 1.3417 US dollars in morning Asian trade, compared with USD 1.3364 in New York on Tuesday.

A strengthening euro against the greenback makes US dollar-priced crude more attractive to buyers using the European currency.

Nunan added that traders were also mounting resistance as crude prices approached the 80-dollar mark after sliding from highs experienced two weeks ago.

However, Nunan warned that ongoing tensions in the Korean peninsula could cap oil market gains as “people might get out of risky investments”.

Stock markets across the world sank on Tuesday as investors dumped risky assets in the wake of North Korea’s shelling of a South Korean island which killed two marines, triggering an exchange of fire