2021-01-29 14:35:00
OIL PRICE: BELOW $56 YET
REUTERS - JANUARY 29, 2021 - Oil prices edged up on Friday but traded in a tight range as demand concerns caused by new coronavirus variants and slow vaccine rollouts offset a cut in Saudi Arabian oil supply and falling U.S. oil inventories.
Brent crude futures for March rose 23 cents, or 0.4%, to $55.76 a barrel by 1007 GMT.
The Brent March contract expires on Friday. The more active April contract was up 27 cents, or 0.5%, at $55.37.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures rose 7 cents, or 0.1%, to $52.41.
“Restrictions on the demand side because of lockdowns are countered by a sufficient reduction in supply ... preventing prices from falling or rising to any significant extent,” said Commerzbank analyst Carsten Fritsch.
Saudi Arabia is set to cut output by 1 million barrels per day (bpd) in February and March. Compliance with output curbs by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies, together known as OPEC+, has improved in January.
A 9.9 million barrel drawdown in U.S. oil inventories last week and forecasts for a small drop in U.S. oil production in February were also price-supportive.
However, market gains have been capped by worries about stalled vaccine rollouts and the spread of contagious new variants of the coronavirus.
Europe’s fight to secure COVID-19 vaccine supplies intensified on Thursday when the European Union warned drug companies such as AstraZeneca that it would use all legal means or even block exports to ensure shots are delivered as promised.
“The expected rebound in global oil demand depends a great deal on the pace of COVID-19 vaccine distribution,” said Stephen Brennock of broker PVM.
“Any loss of momentum in vaccination programmes will undermine the strength of the global oil demand recovery.”
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Earlier:
2021, January, 28, 13:20:00
OIL PRICE: BELOW $56 AGAIN
Brent fell 46 cents, or 0.8%, to $55.35 a barrel. WTI fell 36 cents, or 0.7%, to $52.49 a barrel.
2021, January, 28, 13:10:00
OPEC: DIALOGUE, COOPERATION, RESPECT
OPEC reaffirms its faith – time and time again – of the need for dialogue, cooperation, and respect.
2021, January, 28, 13:05:00
SAUDI ARABIA'S BRILLIANT MOVE
"The surprise cut that they have done recently is a really brilliant move that led to stabilization of the market joined by other OPEC members at the most critical time," Dmitriev, who has been leading Russia's diplomacy in Saudi Arabia alongside Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak, said at the Saudi Future Investment Initiative conference.
2021, January, 27, 14:15:00
OIL PRICE: BELOW $57
Brent climbed 51 cents, or 0.9%, to $56.42 a barrel. WTI rose 41 cents, or 0.8%, to $53.02.
2021, January, 26, 12:25:00
OIL PRICE: NOT ABOVE $56 AGAIN
Brent was down 28 cents, or 0.5%, at $55.60. WTI fell 26 cents, or 0.5%, to $52.51.
2021, January, 25, 14:40:00
OIL PRICE: NOT ABOVE $56 YET
Brent rose 34 cents, or 0.6%, to $55.75 a barrel. WTI was up 37 cents, or 0.7%, at $52.64.
2021, January, 22, 11:35:00
OIL PRICES 2021-22: $50-$55
The price of Brent crude oil to increase from its December 2020 average of $50 per barrel (b) to an average of $56/b in the first quarter of 2021. The Brent price is then expected to average between $51/b and $54/b on a quarterly basis through 2022.
