Oil rose above $81 a barrel, buoyed by general risk-on sentiment, as the first of a spate of supply-and-demand projections scheduled this week forecast a modest rise in US production.
(Bloomberg) — Oil rose above $81 a barrel, buoyed by general risk-on sentiment, as the first of a spate of supply-and-demand projections scheduled this week forecast a modest rise in US production.
Crude held its gains even after a US Energy Information Administration report Tuesday estimated supply will exceed demand in the next two years, despite the unexpected production cut by OPEC+.
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and the International Energy Agency also are scheduled to issue monthly reports later this week.
Despite the bearish government report, key market metrics are signaling renewed strength in the aftermath of OPEC+’s announced output cuts. The December-December spread — the difference between futures for the final month of this year and in 2024 — rallied to more than $5 a barrel, up from $2.53 three weeks ago.
“The oil market is going to remain tight and while China’s reopening has underwhelmed, they will do a lot better going forward and that should keep prices supported,” said Ed Moya, a senior market analyst at Oanda.
Russia’s seaborne oil exports collapsed last week, which could tighten markets further. Almost half a million barrels a day of crude supply from Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan region also remains halted, and there are signs more negotiations will be needed before those flows can resume.
Read More: Citi Sees Crude Weakening Despite OPEC Output Cuts
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