Brent Crude hits $77.41 per barrel, highest in 3 years

Brent crude futures rose 0.2% to $77.41 on Friday, its highest since October 2018, and is on course to add around 2.5% for the week, amid global supply concerns following storms in the US that damaged facilities on the Gulf coast.

Energy Information Administration (EIA) data showed US crude stocks fell by 3.5 million barrels to 414 million last week, the lowest since October 2018.

Also, API data showed that crude stocks in the US fell by 6.1 million barrels last week, almost 3 times more than markets were expecting, and marking the eighth straight weekly fall.

Meanwhile, East Coast refinery utilization rates rose to 93%, the highest rate since May 2019 pointing to strong fuel demand as travel bans ease.

Brent Crude oil is a major benchmark price for purchases of oil worldwide. While Brent Crude oil is sourced from the North Sea the oil production coming from Europe, Africa and the Middle East flowing West tends to be priced relative to this oil.

Source: Trading Economics