Brent Oil Reached Above $88 a Barrel

Brent oil reached above $88 a barrel on January 20. Today, Brent oil is priced at $88.29 a barrel in global markets.

Brent oil, which went up to $ 89.17 yesterday, closed the day at $ 88.44. Today, at 09:16, the barrel of Brent oil, which decreased by 0.16 percent compared to the closing, is trading at $ 88.29. At the same time, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil was traded at $85.76 a barrel. The forecast for the rise in commercial crude oil stocks in the USA, the world's largest oil consumer, played a role in the decline in oil prices. According to the forecast of the American Petroleum Institute, the country's commercial crude oil stocks increased by about 1 million 404 thousand barrels last week compared to the previous week. The market expectation was that inventories would decrease by approximately 1 million 367 thousand barrels. On the other hand, the ongoing demand recovery and short-term supply constraints restrain the downward movement of prices. The International Energy Agency (IEA) has updated its forecast for the increase in global oil demand for 2021 and 2022 upwards, as countries take lighter measures in the Covid-19 outbreak. The agency announced that global oil demand will rise to approximately 96 million 381 thousand barrels per day, with an increase of 5 million 480 thousand barrels per day compared to the previous year, and to 99 million 705 thousand barrels with an increase of 3 million 325 thousand barrels per day this year. The attack by the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen against the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the escalating tension between Russia, the USA and NATO due to Ukraine continue to reinforce the concerns about possible supply shrinkage. Experts predict that oil prices may rise up to $100 per barrel in the coming months if supply cannot meet the increasing demand despite the Covid-19 outbreak. It is stated that the range of 88.48 to 88.70 dollars can be followed as a resistance and the range of 88.13 to 88 dollars as a support zone in Brent oil.