Oil prices rose slightly on Tuesday, impacted by China’s easing of restrictions in the face of covid.
The price of US WTI oil for February delivery rose 0.4% to $79.91 a barrel and Brent was trading 0.5% higher at €84.35 a barrel.
China announced on Monday that it was lifting the mandatory quarantine for people wishing to enter the country on January 8. This is a new and unexpected step taken by Beijing to ease its very strict covid restrictions.
Additionally, freezing temperatures in the United States are also a factor. As a result, more than a third of oil refining capacity on the Gulf Coast has been shut down for days, including the country’s two largest facilities.
Oil prices also rose significantly on Friday. They were then prompted by Russia’s threat to cut crude oil production by 500,000 to 700,000 barrels a day next year, in response to price caps agreed by the EU, G7 and Australia in early December. to limit Russian oil revenues.
