(New York) Oil prices ended sharply higher on Friday after the United Arab Emirates denied considering an exit from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), suggested by an article by the Wall Street Journal.
The price of a barrel of Brent from the North Sea for May delivery rose 1.27%, to close at 85.83 dollars.
As for the barrel of American West Texas Intermediate (WTI), with maturity in April, it rose by 1.94%, to 79.68 dollars.
Prices had initially retreated after the publication of the article by Wall Street Journalaccording to which the Emirates would consider leaving the energy cartel due to disagreements with Saudi Arabia.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, Emirati President, is reportedly concerned about growing Saudi influence in Yemen, as well as differing views on OPEC policy.
The United Arab Emirates is said to be open to an increase in production from the alliance, a strong request from the United States, but this view clashes with that of Saudi Arabia.
Under Saudi pressure, OPEC+ (OPEC and its allies) decided in early October to reduce its volumes by two million barrels per day.
The United Arab Emirates quickly denied the information to several media outlets on Friday.
“The denial was strong, which took this issue out of the equation,” commented John Kilduff of Again Capital. For the analyst, the episode illustrates the fact that the market “is at the mercy of the slightest declaration and the suggestion that OPEC could raise or reduce its production”.
The market was once again focused on China, which was treated to a new encouraging indicator on Friday, with the PMI index in the services sector rising to 55.0 points in February against 52.9 in January, above of the expected 54.5.
In addition, the Chinese and South Korean authorities have indicated that the number of flights between the two countries will gradually increase to return to its pre-coronavirus pandemic level.
For Edward Moya, of Oanda, prices were also boosted by the announcement of a further drop in the number of wells in operation in the United States, according to data from the American group Baker Hughes.
Since December, the number of wells has been reduced by 35 units, or nearly 6%, while the industry had announced a ramp-up in 2023.
