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An aerial view shows pumpjacks at the South Belridge oil field on April 24, 2020 near McKittrick, California.
David McNew | fake images
Oil prices rose Monday, and Brent futures will post a fifth consecutive monthly gain, as global stimulus measures prop up prices even as demand struggles to return to pre-COVID levels in a well-supplied market.
November Brent crude oil futures were unchanged at $ 45.81 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude was at $ 43.05 a barrel, an increase of 8 cents.
WTI is on track for a fourth monthly rise, hitting $ 43.78 a barrel on August 26 when Hurricane Laura struck.
Oil markets shrugged off the impact of the hurricane on Friday as energy companies continued their efforts to restore operations at the offshore US Gulf Coast rigs and refineries that were closed ahead of the storm.
A weak US dollar has supported oil prices even as fuel demand has struggled to recover amid the coronavirus pandemic and supplies remain excessive, although crude may face obstacles in the future, analysts said.
“We believe that the impact of a cheaper dollar from current levels will see minimal impact on crude purchases, regardless of a slightly more favorable crude price,” RBC Capital’s Mike Tran said in an Aug. 27 note.
“The relationship between demand and price elasticity is blunted in the current environment, because oil is already cheap and available and there is currently a shortage of buyers.”
China’s crude imports in September are forecast to fall for the first time in five months, as record volumes of crude are stored inside and outside the world’s largest importer, data from Refinitiv and Vortexa showed.
Reflecting concerns about rising supply and the slow global economic recovery, hedge funds and money managers cut bullish bets on U.S. crude to the lowest level in nearly four months, data showed Friday. .
Higher oil and gas prices are also encouraging US producers to resume drilling, as the country’s oil and gas rig count rose from three to 254 in August, according to data from energy services firm Baker. Hughes Co.
Separately, Saudi Aramco discovered two new oil and gas fields in the northern regions, the kingdom’s energy minister said on Sunday, the state news agency SPA reported.
