Oil Rises With Weaker Dollar, So Far Unmoved by Russian Mutinty

After trading little changed overnight following the dramatic but short-lived rebellion in Russia, oil edged higher as the dollar weakened, making the commodity more attractive to global importers.

(Bloomberg) — After trading little changed overnight following the dramatic but short-lived rebellion in Russia, oil edged higher as the dollar weakened, making the commodity more attractive to global importers.

Calm returned to Moscow following the end of the uprising led by Wagner Group head Yevgeny Prigozhin, with investors waiting to see whether it presaged the potential for more turbulence in Russia, a major OPEC+ producer. Oil prices were unmoved by the dramatic mutiny. 

“There is very little reaction and not much disruption,” S&P Global Inc. Vice Chairman Daniel Yergin said at a conference in Kuala Lumpur. “The thing that is dominating the oil markets right now is economics, not geopolitics.”

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. also said the uprising’s impact on oil prices may be limited because spot fundamentals haven’t changed. Yet RBC Capital Markets said the risk of further civil unrest “must be factored into our oil analysis.”

Oil has dropped around 13% this year, in part due to Russia’s robust exports but also reflecting monetary tightening in the US and a lackluster economic recovery in China. China’s economy continues to show signs of losing momentum as recent data showed slowed spending on everything from holiday travel to cars and homes.

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