Oil prices are slightly lower today. They are being pushed down by a possible ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. However, the expected interest rate developments in the US and the war in Europe are holding back losses.
Ceasefire Talks and Fed Speculations Impact Oil Prices
At around 18:15 CET, the price of North Sea Brent crude oil was down 0.45 percent at $85.39 per barrel. U.S. WTI light crude oil was losing 0.46 percent at the same time, selling at $80.70 a barrel. For the whole week, prices remained almost unchanged.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Thursday that he believed the talks in Qatar could lead to a ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip. A ceasefire could help calm fears that the situation could spread from Gaza to the entire region, IG analyst Tony Sycamore said. It could also prompt Yemen’s Houthis to allow tankers to pass through the Red Sea. A ceasefire could mean oil can move more freely around the world.
Geopolitical Tensions and Supply Concerns
Expectations of an easing of interest rates in the United States, on the other hand, is a boost for prices. The US Federal Reserve’s (Fed) Monetary Policy Committee left interest rates unchanged this week. However, the Fed’s comments have increased risk appetite, according to analysts, and US stock prices, which tend to move in the same direction as oil prices, have reached a new record high.
The broader price decline is also hampered by the war in Europe. Russia today launched its biggest ever missile and drone attack on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. Kiev said it hit the country’s largest hydroelectric power plant and caused blackouts in several regions, Reuters reported.
Source:čtk
