Oil posted its third straight weekly rise on improving demand, with the International Energy Agency (IEA) saying that the market would need extra supply next year.
Futures in New York rose this week, extending their rally to the highest settle since October 2018.
The IEA said that OPEC and its allies would need to lift output to keep the market adequately supplied, although the agency predicted demand would not reach pre-pandemic levels until late next year.
Meanwhile, road traffic in the US and much of Europe is largely back to levels seen before the COVID-19 pandemic.
“People want to get out this summer,” said Peter McNally, global head for industrials, materials and energy at Third Bridge Group Ltd. “With nothing budging on US supply and OPEC+ keeping production restrained,” prices should continue to move higher.
Underlining the market’s strength, West Texas Intermediate’s (WTI) nearest contract closed at its highest premium against the subsequent month since February. Firming in the so-called prompt spread reflects tightening supplies.
WTI crude for July delivery on Friday rose 0.88 percent to US$70.91 a barrel, up 1.4 percent for the week.
Brent crude for July delivery on Friday gained 0.23 percent to settle at US$72.69 a barrel. The contract rose 1.1 percent weekly.
While US crude futures have held above the key US$70-a-barrel level, traders are grappling with the prospects of Iranian supply returning to the market. Talks between the Persian Gulf nation and world powers about a 2015 nuclear deal are set to resume over the weekend.
Meanwhile, there are also risks to the demand outlook in parts of Asia and Latin America as many nations continue to grapple with COVID-19 cases.
Among the more prominent moves in the oil market this week, the discount of US benchmark crude futures against its global counterpart rallied to the narrowest since November last year.
That has driven some buyers from abroad to start shying away from Permian crudes, with the narrow arbitrage making West Texas oil cargoes less attractive.
The IEA said OPEC+ would need to add about 1.4 million barrels a day — less if Iran clinches a deal to remove US sanctions.
That would leave the group with another 5.5 million barrels a day of capacity offline, it said, although Bloomberg calculations suggest the buffer is not quite as high.
Gasoline cracks in New York on Friday fell to the lowest since March.
US President Joe Biden’s administration is weighing options to give relief to US oil refiners from biofuel blending mandates, Reuters reported.
Additional reporting by staff writer
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) would not produce its most advanced technologies in the US next year, Minister of Economic Affairs J.W. Kuo (郭智輝) said yesterday. Kuo made the comment during an appearance at the legislature, hours after the chipmaker announced that it would invest an additional US$100 billion to expand its manufacturing operations in the US. Asked by Taiwan People’s Party Legislator-at-large Chang Chi-kai (張啟楷) if TSMC would allow its most advanced technologies, the yet-to-be-released 2-nanometer and 1.6-nanometer processes, to go to the US in the near term, Kuo denied it. TSMC recently opened its first US factory, which produces 4-nanometer
PROTECTION: The investigation, which takes aim at exporters such as Canada, Germany and Brazil, came days after Trump unveiled tariff hikes on steel and aluminum products US President Donald Trump on Saturday ordered a probe into potential tariffs on lumber imports — a move threatening to stoke trade tensions — while also pushing for a domestic supply boost. Trump signed an executive order instructing US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick to begin an investigation “to determine the effects on the national security of imports of timber, lumber and their derivative products.” The study might result in new tariffs being imposed, which would pile on top of existing levies. The investigation takes aim at exporters like Canada, Germany and Brazil, with White House officials earlier accusing these economies of
Teleperformance SE, the largest call-center operator in the world, is rolling out an artificial intelligence (AI) system that softens English-speaking Indian workers’ accents in real time in a move the company claims would make them more understandable. The technology, called accent translation, coupled with background noise cancelation, is being deployed in call centers in India, where workers provide customer support to some of Teleperformance’s international clients. The company provides outsourced customer support and content moderation to global companies including Apple Inc, ByteDance Ltd’s (字節跳動) TikTok and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd. “When you have an Indian agent on the line, sometimes it’s hard
‘SACRED MOUNTAIN’: The chipmaker can form joint ventures abroad, except in China, but like other firms, it needs government approval for large investments Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) needs government permission for any overseas joint ventures (JVs), but there are no restrictions on making the most advanced chips overseas other than for China, Minister of Economic Affairs J.W. Kuo (郭智輝) said yesterday. US media have said that TSMC, the world’s largest contract chipmaker and a major supplier to companies such as Apple Inc and Nvidia Corp, has been in talks for a stake in Intel Corp. Neither company has confirmed the talks, but US President Donald Trump has accused Taiwan of taking away the US’ semiconductor business and said he wants the industry back
RSS