oil
Oil prices managed to rise and recover strongly for the second day in a row, after they collapsed and settled below the $100 per barrel level on Wednesday, for the first time in nearly two months, specifically since last May, due to the strengthening of global economic recession fears.
During today’s trading, US crude contracts rose by 2.44%, and recorded about $105.67 a barrel. Brent crude contracts also rose by 2.35% and scored about $108.81 a barrel. Brent crude futures also rose by 2.03% and recorded about 106.77 dollars per barrel.
Crude oil prices rose for the second day in a row, coinciding with concerns about a lack of global supplies in the markets, which in turn overshadows fears of weak demand as a result of a possible global economic recession, as investors focus more on fears of a lack of supplies after the Russian court’s decision to temporarily close an oil tanker line from Kazakhstan for environmental reasons. , which may lead to the suspension of oil exports from Kazakhstan, which in turn may lead to a scarcity of oil supply in the markets.
In addition, crude oil prices benefited from the release of US employment data, which showed a strong positivity, which strongly confirms that the US economy is in a very strong position and is not close to a recession, and this in turn boosted the markets’ optimism about the strength of US demand for oil.
At the same time, the health authorities in Shanghai decided, today, Friday, to gradually ease the closure restrictions imposed to confront the outbreak of the Corona virus, by reopening cinemas, to be the beginning of the plan for the gradual resumption of daily activities of life inside the city, and this step also had a positive effect. towards oil prices and optimism about the strength of Chinese demand for oil this year.
On the other hand, oil prices are still affected by the increasing fears of Corona after the recent high rate of injuries in many countries, which in turn may lead to the imposition of new closure restrictions soon to control the outbreak of the dangerous coronavirus, and in this case, too, the demand for crude oil may be severely affected. This increases pressure on oil in the market.
The World Health Organization confirmed in a statement issued today, Friday, that the organization’s emergency committee will hold its twelfth meeting today in Geneva on the developments of the outbreak of the new Corona virus, according to the International Health Regulations, and at the invitation of the Director-General of the organization, Dr. Tedros Adhanom.
With regard to other energy sources, apart from oil prices, gasoline contracts rose during today’s trading by 0.08%, to record $3.4232 per gallon, while natural gas contracts fell and recorded $6.186 per million thermal units, a decrease of 1.76%, and heating oil contracts also decreased by 1.13%. And recorded about 3.6323 US dollars.