Oil nudges higher after Saudi Arabia hikes prices

SINGAPORE : Oil futures edged up on Monday after Saudi Arabia hiked June low prices for many areas and because the prospect of a Gaza ceasefire deal looked slim, renewing fears the Israel-Hamas war might peaceable widen in the key oil producing site.

Brent low futures climbed 28 cents, or 0.3 per cent, to $83.24 a barrel at 0119 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate low futures were at $78.40 a barrel, up 29 cents, or 0.4 per cent.

Saudi Arabia raised the official selling prices (OSPs) for its low offered to Asia, Northwest Europe and the Mediterranean in June, signalling expectations of discover put a query to this summer.

“After falling a miniature more than 7.3 per cent final week ensuing from easing geopolitical tensions, ICE Brent has started the contemporary purchasing and selling week on a stronger footing, opening higher,” ING’s head of commodities overview Warren Patterson said in a repeat.

This comes after Saudi Arabia raised June OSPs for many areas amid a tightening of supplies this quarter, he added.

Remaining week, each and every futures contracts posted their steepest weekly loss in three months with Brent falling more than 7 per cent and WTI down 6.8 per cent, as traders weighed extinct U.S. jobs records and the most likely timing of a Federal Reserve curiosity rate decrease.

The geopolitical possibility top rate in oil prices has also eased as talks for a Gaza ceasefire are underway.

On the replace hand, prospects for a deal looked slim on Sunday as Hamas reiterated its put a query to for an cease to the war in alternate for the releasing of hostages, and Israeli Top Minister Benjamin Netanyahu flatly dominated that out.

In a establish provide also can merely tighten, U.S. energy corporations decrease the option of oil and natural gasoline rigs working for a second week in a row final week, with oil rigs down seven to 499, in the very finest weekly drop since November 2023, Baker Hughes said in a picture on Friday.