Brent Oil Cruised Above $74 A Barrel
Brent oil cruised above $74 a barrel on December 16. Today, Brent oil is priced at $74.56 a barrel in global markets.
Brent oil, which went up to $ 74.58 yesterday, closed the day at $ 73.88. Brent oil, which increased by 0.92 percent compared to the closing at 09:00 am today, is trading at $ 74.56 a barrel. At the same time, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil was traded at $71.61 a barrel.
Despite the expectations that the Omicron variant of the coronavirus will slow down oil demand, the drop in US crude oil and gasoline stocks more than expected played a role in the rise in oil prices.
According to the data of the US Energy Information Administration (EIA), the commercial crude oil stocks of the US decreased by 4 million 600 thousand barrels (1.1 percent) last week compared to the previous week and were determined as approximately 428 million 300 thousand barrels. The market expectation was that inventories would decrease by 2 million 600 thousand barrels.
Gasoline stocks of the USA decreased by 700 thousand barrels (0.3 percent) to 218 million 600 thousand barrels. The data in question led to the perception that despite the increase in coronavirus cases, the demand in the USA, the world's largest oil consumer, is at record levels.
On the other hand, the concerns caused by the Omicron variant limit the upward movement of prices. The World Health Organization reported that the Omicron variant is only weeks away from its peak, and that governments and other institutions must step up their efforts.
In technical terms, it was stated that the range of 74.68 to 74.77 dollars can be followed as a resistance and the range of 74.26 to 74.14 dollars as a support zone in
Brent oil.