By Adedapo Adesanya
Oil prices improved by more than 2 per cent on Tuesday as the rescue of Credit Suisse allayed concerns of a banking crisis that would hurt economic growth and cut fuel demand.
Brent crude grew by $1.53 or 2.1 per cent to at $69.33 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) appreciated by $1.69 or 2.5 per cent to $69.33 per barrel.
Measures to stabilise the banking sector, including a UBS takeover of Credit Suisse and pledges from major central banks to boost liquidity, have calmed fears about the financial system that shook markets in the oil space last week.
Last week, the two benchmarks shed more than 10 per cent as the banking crisis deepened but following the moves, the market showed promising signs of recovery.
Regardless, the US Federal Reserve started its monetary policy meeting on Tuesday with markets expecting a rate hike of 25 basis points, down from previous expectations of a 50 basis points increase.
Meanwhile, some predictions have said the US central bank could pause further rate hikes or delay releasing new economic projections, especially in light of the recent crisis.
Crude oil inventories in the United States rose this week, with a 3.262 million barrel build, the American Petroleum Institute (API) data showed on Tuesday, compared to estimates of a 1.448 million barrel draw.
The total number of barrels of crude oil gained so far this year is now more than 59 million barrels.
This week, SPR inventory held steady for the tenth week in a row at 371.6 million barrels—the lowest amount of crude oil in the SPR since December 1983.
Figures from the US Energy Information Agency (EIA) are due later on Wednesday.
The market will be awaiting a meeting of ministers from the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries plus Russia and other allies, OPEC+, scheduled for April 3.
Not many factors could influence any decision reached at the meeting since the drop in prices reflects banking fears rather than supply and demand.
Last November, with prices weakening, OPEC+ reduced its output target by 2 million barrels per day – the largest cut since the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
The reduction, which at that time applied for the whole of 2023, was reiterated by Saudi Arabia’s energy minister, Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, who hinted that OPEC+ will stick to the reduced target until the end of the year.
Dipo Olowookere