Oil prices were up on Wednesday as investors went on a bargain spree after the last session’s decline and on hopes that countries will fill their strategic reserves. However, threats of a global recession and oversupply prevented further gains.
Brent futures rose 1.3%, or 38 cents, at $29.98 per barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was up 1.8%, or 36 cents, at $20.47 per barrel.
The two benchmarks were undersold by concerns on the futility of the global production cut in compensating for fuel demand.
Crude inventories increased by 13.1 million barrels, totaling 486.9 million barrels in the week ended on April 10. The build was higher than analyst expectations of 11.7 million barrels.
Massive buying of countries to fill their strategic reserves also underpinned the market.
OPEC and its allies including Russia said that the International Energy Agency may reveal millions of barrels’ worth of purchases to support the record output cut.
The U.S. Energy Department said it is in talks with nine energy companies to purchase 23 million barrels of local oil for its oil reserve.
However, the threat of a deep recession looming over the economy weighed on market sentiment.
The global economy is forecasted to fall 3.0% in 2020 in a coronavirus-led collapse, which will be the steepest decline since the Great Depression of the 1930s, the International Monetary Fund said.
The Dollar fell to two-year lows on Friday, heading to its lowest decline in 10 years as concerns mounted over the economic recovery of the U.S. amid a second resurgence of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Dollar index plunged to 92.777, on course ...
Oil traded higher on Friday, further reclaiming lost ground from three-week lows in the previous session as the COVID-19 situation continued to dent the global economy as well as oil consumption. Brent crude gained 0.3%, trading at $43.08 ...
Oil prices fell on Thursday as the rising global coronavirus cases weighed on fuel demand recovery just as OPEC+ producers are set to increase supply. The Brent contract for October slid 0.05%, or 2 cents, at $44.07 per barrel, while the September ...
The dollar was briefly lifted on Thursday after the U.S. Federal Reserve offered no concrete clues about its next course of action, while investors hoped for an easy policy as the coronavirus resurgence stalled economic recovery. The dollar ...
On Wednesday, European stocks rose slightly after mixed earnings reports. However, the new wave of the coronavirus outbreak kept investors cautious while they also wait for the U.S. Federal Reserve’s announcement. The Stoxx Europe 600 ...