Oil prices incurred weekly losses of more than 1 percent, despite the large gains recorded in the last two sessions, which exceeded 5 percent, supported by the approval of the US Congress of the debt ceiling agreement that avoids the government in the largest oil consuming country in the world from defaulting on its debts as well as publishing Jobs data that boosted hopes of a possible halt to raising interest rates in the United States.
The focus now turns to the OPEC+ meeting on June 4th.
The US Senate passed the debt ceiling bill, averting a catastrophic default that would have jolted the financial markets.
Meanwhile, the International Air Transport Association announced the continued growth of the air travel sector, as international air travel increased by 48 percent in April on an annual basis, to reach 90.5 percent of pre-COVID-19 levels.
On the other hand, Baker Hughes data revealed that oil drilling rigs in the United States declined for the fifth week in a row, as they fell by 15 rigs to 555 rigs this week, which is the lowest level since April 2022.
The number of oil exploration rigs worldwide – an early indicator of future production – decreased by 25 to 1,783 in May on a monthly basis.
price move
Brent crude futures rose at settlement in the last weekly trading by $1.85, or 2.5 percent, to $76.13 a barrel upon settlement, and West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose $1.64, or 2.3 percent, to $71.74 upon settlement, according to Reuters data. .
Over the course of the week, both contracts fell by more than 1 percent, in their first weekly loss in three weeks, as Brent crude recorded losses of about 1.1 percent, while US crude contracts fell 1.3 percent.
And US jobs increased more than expected in May, but the decrease in the rise in wages may allow the US Central Bank to skip an expected hike in interest rates this month for the first time in more than a year, which may support the demand for oil.
Oil traders will be watching the June 4th meeting of the OPEC+ alliance, which includes members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and allies including Russia.
The group had announced in April a sudden voluntary production cut of 1.16 million barrels per day, but the price gains resulting from the cut have faded and crude oil is currently trading below pre-cut levels.
Two sources in OPEC + told Reuters that the alliance is discussing possible options for its next meeting, including the possibility of announcing an additional cut of about one million barrels per day.
2023-06-03 21:07:22
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