Oil Prices Reach Six-Month Highs as Gains Extend

Global oil prices surged during European trading on Wednesday, marking the fifth consecutive session of gains and reaching a six-week peak as Brent nears $90 amid concerns over disruptions in global supply.

Following the conclusion of the OPEC+ technical meeting today, production policies remained unchanged, with market participants eagerly awaiting official US inventory data from the EIA later in the day. Initial figures indicated a larger-than-anticipated drawdown.

Prices

US crude climbed by 0.85% to $86.06 per barrel, reaching its highest level since October 2023, while Brent rose by 0.8% to $89.84 per barrel, also hitting its highest point since October 2023.

On Tuesday, US crude rising by 1.75% and Brent by 1.8%, marking the fourth consecutive session of gains amid escalating geopolitical tensions.

Global Supply

Global supply concerns persisted as Ukraine continued its drone attacks on Russian energy infrastructure, including hitting Russia's third-largest oil refinery.

Meanwhile, Iran vowed to respond to Israel after accusing it of launching airstrikes against its consulate in Damascus, killing seven Iranian officials.

Heightened tensions between the two nations reignited fears of a potential conflict in the Middle East, threatening to disrupt supplies.

US Stocks

Initial data from the American Petroleum Institute indicated a 2.3 million barrel decrease in US crude stocks for the week ending March 29, surpassing estimates of a 0.5 million barrel drop.

This marked the third weekly decline in a month, signaling positive demand trends in the US.

Traders now anticipate official EIA data today, which is expected to show a 0.3 million barrel inventory drawdown.