Oil Prices Surge: China’s Economic Boost Sparks Hope for Higher Demand

The West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil contract in New York closed higher on Friday (September 27), but fell this week. Investors are weighing expectations of rising global oil supplies and stimulus measures from China, a major oil importer.

The WTI crude oil contract is due in November. rose 51 cents, or 0.75%, to close at $68.18/barrel.

The Brent crude oil contract (BRENT) will be delivered in November. rose 38 cents, or 0.53%, to close at $71.98/barrel.

But in this week WTI crude futures were down about 5% and Brent crude futures were down about 3%.

The People’s Bank of China cut interest rates and injected liquidity into the banking system on Friday. to try to stimulate economic growth back to its target of around 5% this year.

China is also expected to announce additional fiscal measures ahead of the Chinese holiday starting October 1, after a meeting of senior Communist Party leaders showed more urgency to deal with mounting economic pressures.

The news source revealed that the Group of Petroleum Exporting Countries and Allies or OPEC+ will go ahead with plans to increase oil production by 180,000 barrels per day every month starting in December.

A report by the Financial Times on Wednesday said that The plan to increase production comes as Saudi Arabia decides to scrap its oil price target of $100 and increase its market share.

However, Saudi Arabia has repeatedly denied that it has set oil price targets. And a source from the OPEC + group informed Reuters that the planned increase in production from December does not represent any significant change from the current policy.

In the United States, some operators are beginning to resume operations in the Gulf of Mexico. After Hurricane Helen (Helene) made landfall in Florida on Thursday night. On Friday, Chevron began sending back staff to restore the capacity of its drilling rigs.

Lebanon’s interim prime minister, Najib Mikati, said Friday’s Israeli attack on Beirut’s southern suburbs showed Israel was not interested in efforts to reach a ceasefire agreement. which has helped support oil prices

By InfoQuest News Agency (28 September 2024)

Tags: WTI oil , crude oil , oil price