Oil Steadies as Traders Track Risk-On Tone and Storm Francine
Oil held a one-day gain as a risk-on tone returned to wider financial markets, benefiting commodities including crude, while a storm menaced some supplies in the Gulf of Mexico.
Brent was steady below $72 a barrel after rising more than 1% on Monday to snap a six-day losing streak, while West Texas Intermediate was near $69. US share markets rebounded on Monday from a steep decline spurred by concerns that US growth was slowing just as China's economy faltered.
Tropical Storm Francine strengthened in the Gulf of Mexico, spurring drillers to evacuate crews as forecasters increased the intensity outlook for a system now expected to hit Louisiana as a Category 2 hurricane. On its expected track, Francine may rake nine major platforms.
Brent closed at the lowest since 2021 on Friday as concerns intensified about restrained demand in major economies and abundant supply. The market's increasingly bearish tone spurred Wall Street banks to pare price forecasts for the coming quarters, while the OPEC+ cartel was forced to delay a planned restart of some of its shuttered output from October.
Brent for November settlement was little changed at $71.94 a barrel at 8:33 a.m. in Singapore. WTI for October delivery was steady at $68.78 a barrel.
At the Asia Pacific Petroleum Conference in Singapore this week, most speakers have been cautious about the market outlook. Among them, Ben Luckock, head of oil at Trafigura Group ââ-š¬Ã¢â‚¬ one of the world's top traders ââ-š¬Ã¢â‚¬ warned that Brent was probably going to slip into the $60s "relatively soon".
In addition to APPEC, traders will scrutinize the monthly market outlook from OPEC, which is due for release later Tuesday.
Source : Bloomberg
