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Brent, WTI Prices Hit Highest Since 2014

Brent, WTI Prices Hit Highest Since 2014
Brent, WTI Prices Hit Highest Since 2014

Brent crude oil rose for a sixth day on Tuesday to hit its highest since November 2014 at over $75 a barrel, buoyed by expectations that supplies will tighten just as demand reaches record levels.

Brent crude futures marked $75.27 a barrel on Tuesday, their highest since Nov. 27, 2014. Brent was still at $75.07 a barrel, up 36 cents, or 0.5%, from its last close, Reuters reported.

Brent’s six-day rising streak is the longest such string of gains since December, with prices up more than 20% from 2018-lows plumbed in February.

US West Texas Intermediate crude futures were at $69.17 a barrel, up 53 cents, or 0.8%, from their last settlement. On Thursday, WTI rose to its strongest since Nov. 28, 2014 at $69.56.

Markets have been lifted by supply cuts led by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, which were introduced in 2017 with the aim of propping up the market.

The potential of renewed US sanctions against Iran is also pushing prices higher.

Stephen Innes, the head of trading for Asia-Pacific at futures brokerage OANDA, said new sanctions against Tehran “could push oil prices up as much as $5 per barrel”.

The United States has until May 12 to decide whether it will leave the Iran nuclear deal and reimpose sanctions against OPEC’s third-largest producer, which would further tighten global supplies.

“Crude prices are now sitting at the highest levels in three years, reflecting ongoing concerns around geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, which is the source of nearly half of the world’s oil supply,” ANZ bank said.

OPEC’s efforts to tighten markets are being led by top exporter Saudi Arabia, where state-controlled oil firm Saudi Aramco is pushing for higher prices ahead of a partial listing planned for later this year or 2019.

 

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