Brent Crude trades at $70 per barrel

Brent crude futures traded around $70 a barrel on Thursday, the lowest since July 21st amid rising inventories and demand concerns.

Government data on Wednesday showed US crude stockpiles rose by 3.63 million barrels last week, the biggest gain since March.

Meanwhile, both the US and China are witnessing a spike in coronavirus cases amid the highly contagious delta variant, threatening demand at the peak summer driving season and limiting air traffic.

Yet, Saudi Aramco lifted oil prices for the US by 10-20 cents a barrel and Asia by 20-60 cents a barrel for September as the oil market is nonetheless seen tight on the back of the global economic recovery from last year’s Covid-19 crisis.

Elsewhere, tension in the Middle East put a floor under prices.

(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