Oil Prices Rise With Falling Inventories

Oil prices rose on Wednesday, September 15th, after data showed a larger-than-expected decline in crude stocks in the United States, the largest consumer of fuel in the world, in addition to expectations of a recovery in demand with the expansion of vaccinations.

But the decline in China’s consumption of crude oil in August, with refinery operating rates falling to the lowest level since May, and declining factory production, limited the gains in the price of oil.

Brent crude rose 49 cents, equivalent to 0.7%, to $ 74.09, while US West Texas crude rose 48 cents, equivalent to 0.7%, to $ 70.94 a barrel.

Crude stocks fell 5.4 million barrels for the week ending September 10, while analysts expected production to fall by an average of 3.5 million barrels.

The International Energy Agency said yesterday, Tuesday, that the distribution of vaccines against Covid-19 would fuel a recovery, after global demand for oil declined for three months due to the spread of the mutated delta strain of the Coronavirus and the renewal of restrictions imposed to confront the pandemic.