Global oil price drops as investors take profits after 5-day rally, Energy News, ET EnergyWorld

TOKYO: Oil markets eased on Tuesday after a five-day rally as investors took profits on fears that rising prices would weaken fuel demand, although market sentiment remained firm against the backdrop of of limited supply.

Brent crude futures fell 17 cents, or 0.2%, to $ 79.36 a barrel at 0121 GMT after jumping 1.8% to their highest level since October 2018 on Monday.

US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures fell 9 cents, or 0.1%, to $ 75.36 a barrel, after rising 2% and reaching their highest level since July the previous day .

“Oil markets have taken a break after a long rally with some investors reaping profits,” said Toshitaka Tazawa, analyst at Fujitomi Securities Co Ltd, adding that there were also fears that soaring oil prices could reduce demand. fuel.

“Nonetheless, market sentiment remained strong with a tighter supply,” he said, predicting that Brent could soon try an $ 80 a barrel wrench.

Major African oil exporters Nigeria and Angola will find it difficult to increase production to their OPEC quota levels at least until next year, as underinvestment and problems Persistent maintenance continues to hamper production, warn sources at their respective oil companies.

Their battle mirrors that of several other members of the OPEC + group who have cut production over the past year to support prices when COVID-19 hit demand, but fail to scale up production to meet growing global needs. in fuel as economies recover.

Stimulating investors’ appetite for risk, Goldman Sachs raised its year-end forecast for Brent crude by $ 10 to $ 90 a barrel. Global supplies have tightened due to the rapid recovery in demand for fuel following the outbreak of the Delta variant of the coronavirus and the blow from Hurricane Ida to US production.

Analysts say higher prices for liquefied natural gas (LNG) and spot coal could also further support oil prices.

“Demand for oil could increase by an additional 0.5 million barrels per day, or 0.5% of global oil supply, as high gas prices force a shift from gas consumption to oil consumption Commonwealth Bank commodities analyst Vivek Dhar said in a note.

“This should tighten the oil markets further, especially with OPEC + supply additions remaining quite conservative,” he said, adding that energy prices could rise further from here if the winter period in the northern hemisphere turned out to be colder than expected.