Oil prices rose this Wednesday, driven by tight supply and the prospect of increased demand due to the start of travel season of the boreal summer in the United States, the world’s largest consumer of crude oil.
At 11:11 GMT, crude oil futures Brent for July they rose for the fifth consecutive session, advancing $1.34, or 1.14%, to $114.83 a barrel, and the West Texas Intermediate in the United States (WTI) for July delivery gained $1.45, or 1.32%, to $111.22.
Crude prices are receiving support from tight gasoline supplies as inventories of the refined oil product fell by 4.2 million barrels last week, market sources said on Tuesday, citing figures from the American Petroleum Institute (API).
US government stock data is due on Wednesday and analysts polled by Reuters estimate that US crude and gasoline inventories declined last week.
US gasoline stocks are at their lowest seasonal level since 2014 just ahead of the summer travel season,” said Commerzbank analyst Carsten Fritsch.
Weekend trips are expected to Memorial Day in the United States be the busiest in two years, which will see demand for fuel rise as more drivers hit the road and coronavirus pandemic restrictions are shaken off despite high fuel prices.
At the same time, global crude supplies remain tight as buyers shun oil from Russia – the world’s second largest exporter – following the invasion of Ukraine, which Moscow calls a “special military operation”.
France’s new foreign minister said Tuesday that she is optimistic about reaching agreement on a European Union sanctions package that would phase out Russian oil imports to the bloc, despite ongoing opposition in some sectors.
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