The price of a barrel of American WTI oil exceeded Wednesday 110 dollars, a record since 2013, pushed by the war in Ukraine which continues to fuel fears about the supply of this crucial raw material.
Around 8:30 a.m. in Paris, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) reached $110.18 a barrel, hours after Brent also broke above the $110 threshold. Brent rose to $111.78 a barrel.
The invasion of Ukraine by Vladimir Putin’s Russia led the European Union and the United States in the lead to impose strong sanctions on Moscow, fueling fears that Russian exports could be cut off. Russia is the second largest exporter of crude oil in the world.
“Supply chain issues and inflationary pressures remain the primary concern of many investors around the world,” said Andy McCormick, analyst at T. Rowe Price.
The International Energy Agency (IEA), however, announced on Tuesday that its member countries would release 60 million barrels of oil from their emergency reserves to stabilize the market. Of this total, 30 million will be released by the United States, said US President Joe Biden.
Crude prices were already soaring
The Russian-Ukrainian conflict comes at a time when crude prices were already soaring due to insufficient supply and a strong recovery in demand around the world caused by the lifting, in many many countries, health restrictions imposed to fight the Covid-19 pandemic.
An OPEC+ meeting, in which Russia will participate, will be held this Wednesday. Despite the surge in prices, analysts are counting on a renewal of the cautious strategy of the cartel made up of thirteen members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), led by Riyadh, and their ten allies led by Moscow.