Even though the rally in crude oil prices lost steam towards the end of last week, ICE Brent still managed to close almost 1.3% higher on the week and stay above $80 a barrel, analysts say of ING raw materials, Warren Patterson and Ewa Manthey.
Oil markets weighed down by uncertainty
“There is a considerable amount of uncertainty in the markets entering this week, given President Trump’s inauguration and the series of executive orders he reportedly plans to sign. This, combined with today being a US holiday. , means that some market participants may have decided to reduce risk.”
“The latest positioning data shows that speculators increased their net long position in ICE Brent by 27,473 lots during the last reporting week, leaving them with a net long position of 254,332 lots as of last Tuesday. The move was driven by new positions “The strong buying reflects concerns about supply following the announcement of US sanctions against the Russian energy industry.”
“China’s production data on Friday shows that refineries increased the amount of crude oil they processed by 1.3% year-on-year in December. However, for the full year 2024, refinery activity still fell 3.6% year-on-year, reflecting weaker domestic demand Production and trade numbers suggest apparent oil demand in December was just over 13.9 million barrels per day, down from 14 million. barrels per day from the previous month, but 0.6% more year-on-year.”
Source: Fx Street

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