Oil Rising Thanks to Chinese And US Data, What’s Next?

Oil prices recovered after a 1% drop in the previous session, with the support of positive economic data from China and the United States, but the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic in India put pressure on prices.

Brent crude futures for July delivery were at $68.40 a barrel, up 31 cents, or 0.5%, while US West Texas Intermediate crude for June delivery rose 29 cents, or 0.5%, to $65.

Brent and West Texas Intermediate are heading for their second consecutive weekly gains, as it paves the way for a recovery in fuel demand, easing movement restrictions in the United States and Europe, restoring factory activities and vaccination with Coronavirus vaccines, while it is likely to provide unleash on travel in the season Summer more subsidies for the consumption of gasoline and aviation fuel.

In China, data showed export growth unexpectedly accelerated in April, and a special survey indicated a strong increase in service sector activity.

But crude oil imports for the world’s largest buyer fell 0.2% in April from the same period a year earlier, to 40.36 million tons, or 9.82 million barrels per day, the lowest level since December.

In the United States, the largest consumer of oil in the world, jobless claims decreased, indicating that the labor market recovery has entered a new phase in light of the prosperity of the economy.

However, the recovery in oil demand has been uneven, as the high incidence of Covid-19 infections in India has reduced fuel consumption in the world’s third largest oil importer and consumer.