Oil prices retreated on Monday as investors feared that the United States would use up its strategic crude reserves or that demand would be affected by new health restrictions. At around 10:40 GMT (11:40 in Paris), the price of a barrel of Brent from the North Sea for delivery in January gave up 1.19%, to 81.19 dollars. In New York, a barrel of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for the month of December lost 0.94% to 80.02 dollars.
“There are no major economic indicators today, so investors focus on information about” US strategic reserves, comments Walid Koudmani, analyst at XTB. The United States, the world’s largest producer and consumer, could use its abundant strategic reserves to lower crude prices and limit inflation.
If US President Joe Biden decides to tap into these stocks, the market could “react immediately, but the long-term consequences would be limited,” said Koudmani. “We are not convinced that the recent weakness in prices is to be attributed to discussions on strategic reserves,” said Bjarne Schieldrop, analyst at SEB, however.
According to him, the fall in prices is to be attributed “to increased concerns about an increase in the number of Covid-19 infections, which could lead to a limitation of the demand for oil in the event of new confinements”. In Europe, for example, Austria announced the entry into force on Monday of a lockdown for unvaccinated people, while Germany is preparing for a massive return to telework, the most populous country in Europe. having reached an all-time high infection rate on Sunday.
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