Record-high US fuel demand gives oil a jumpstart
Singapore — Oil prices rose on Thursday as US implied consumer petroleum demand surged to a record high in the world’s top oil consumer even as the Omicron variant of coronavirus threatens to dent oil consumption globally.
A signal by the US Federal Reserve to tackle inflation before it derails that economy also boosted prices.
Brent crude oil futures rose by 65 US cents, or 0.9%, to $74.53 a barrel by 4.36am GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures increased by 74 US cents, or 1%, to $71.61.
“Despite the current virus surge, the weekly EIA [Energy Information Administration] oil inventory report showed demand for petroleum products hit a record high, crude exports bounced back and national crude stocks posted a larger-than-expected draw,” said Edward Moya, senior analyst at Oanda.
“This current Omicron wave may lead to limited restrictive measures across the US, but lockdowns that happened during the peak of the pandemic will not be revisited.”
US crude inventories sank by 4.6-million barrels in the week to December 10, data from the EIA showed. That was more than double expectations in a Reuters poll for a 2.1-million-barrel drop.
Product supplied by refineries, a proxy for demand, surged in the most recent week to 23.2-million barrels per day (bpd), due to gains in petrol, diesel and other refined products.
Analysts said the rise reflects both expectations for a surge of people travelling for the holidays and the loosening of supply-chain bottlenecks that has more trucks on the road delivering goods.
Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve said it would end its pandemic-era bond purchases in March and begin raising interest rates as unemployment remains low and inflation has climbed.
“The FOMC [Federal Open Market Committee] policy decision was the right amount of hawkishness that allowed risk appetite to remain healthy and supportive for economic growth, which is also positive for oil demand,” Moya added.
Lingering worries about coronavirus curbed price gains.
Britain and SA reported record daily Covid-19 cases with Omicron spreading rapidly, while many firms across the globe are now asking employees to work from home, which could also limit oil demand.
Reuters