Oil prices rise slightly after 4% decline

Oil prices rose slightly on Tuesday after tumbling more than 4% on Monday, with WTI crude trading at $71.28 a barrel, while Brent oil at $72.9 a barrel, after a preliminary Reuters poll showed that US crude and product inventories likely fell last week, with both distillates and gasoline stockpiles predicted to have fallen for a third straight week.

Meanwhile, a flash reading showed that India’s daily gasoline consumption exceeded pre-pandemic levels in July.

Monday’s deep losses were dragged down by concerns over a slowdown in China’s economic recovery as factory activity slowed in July.

In addition, Reuters reported that the Delta variant poses new risks for China as it spreads from the coast to inland cities.

In the US, Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said that “things are going to get worse”, mostly among the unvaccinated.

Also, a survey found that oil output from the OPEC rose in July to its highest since April 2020, while Saudi Arabia phased out a voluntary supply cut.

The West Texas Intermediate (WTI) benchmark for US crude is the world’s most actively traded commodity.

Source: Trading Economics