Oil was stable on Wednesday after Russia cut off gas supplies to Bulgaria and Poland, but prices were held in check by concerns that lockdown measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus in Asia would weigh on economic growth. and the demand for crude oil.
After falling into negative territory, crude oil futures Brent They were up 53 cents, or 0.5%, at $105.52 a barrel by 10:24 GMT. US crude oil futures West Texas Intermediate they gained 60 cents, or 0.6%, at $102.30 a barrel.
The Russian energy giant Gazprom said on Wednesday it had cut off gas supplies to Bulgaria and Poland, in a major escalation of Russia’s dispute with the West over Ukraine.
While crude prices didn’t soar on Wednesday, the dispute sent NYMEX ultra-low-sulfur gas oil futures up more than 9% on Tuesday to $4.47 a gallon, a record close.
US government data on oil inventories will be released today. The data of American Petroleum Institute showed on Tuesday that US crude and distillate stocks rose last week, while gasoline inventories fell.
In addition, the dollar rose to its highest level in two years on Wednesday, making oil purchases more expensive for holders of other currencies.
The rise in US crude stocks last week and strong Russian crude exports are limiting the upside for crude,” said UBS commodity analyst Giovanni Stauvono.
“This in a risk environment with a stronger US dollar and mobility restrictions in the second largest oil consumer, China.”
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned that Asia was facing a “stagflation” scenario with the war in Ukraine, a rebound in raw material costs and a slowdown in China.
The central bank of china said Tuesday it would increase support for monetary policy as Beijing scrambles to crack down on a nascent covid-19 outbreak in the capital and avoid the kind of debilitating citywide lockdown that Shanghai has endured for a month. Any stimulus would boost oil demand.