WTI crude oil prices are perched in the range of USD 92.40 and Brent at USD 94.30 per barrel. Both are getting closer to the psychological level of USD100 again.
Crude oil prices completed a seven-week non-stop rally on Friday. When the news was written in the Asian session on Monday (7/February), WTI was still perched at around USD92.40 and Brent at USD94.30 per barrel. Momentum both seems to be fading, but the global economic recovery and the Ukrainian crisis that underlies this rally are still continuing.
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| WTI Crude Oil Price Chart (Weekly) |
The main factor driving the current increase in crude oil prices is the increase in demand in line with the post-pandemic economic recovery which coincides with the continuing disruption of global supply chains. OPEC+ is still having difficulty meeting production targets, due to the outbreak of armed conflict in a number of member countries.
The structure of the oil market is also showing signs of tightening supply. Bloomberg reported that a number of oil and gas storage centers recorded a decline in inventories. Saudi Aramco recently also raised its prices for customers in Asia, the US and Europe for March delivery.
Meanwhile, tensions on the Ukrainian border are heating up. Moscow says that more than 100,000 troops are on standby at the border not to invade Ukraine, but to take military action if its demands are
not met. One of the demands was for NATO to promise not to accept Ukraine's membership.
White House Security Adviser Jake Sullivan has a different opinion. He said that if Russia did not accommodate a diplomatic approach, Putin might annex the Donbass region of Ukraine, launch a cyberattack, or even command a full-fledged invasion of Ukraine.
"We believe there is a very clear possibility that Vladimir Putin will order an attack on Ukraine," Sullivan told ABC's This Week television program. can act aggressively against Ukraine at any time now."
Washington has made it clear it will not send troops to protect Ukraine, because the country is not yet a member of NATO. However, Washington is already sending weapons to Kyiv. The US also plans to fly an additional 3000 troops to Poland and Romania to tackle a potential crisis. Reuters reported some of them had landed in Poland over the weekend.
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