On Monday, the price of oil increased due to a decrease in global supply caused by reduced exports from Saudi Arabia and Russia. This outweighed concerns about the impact on global demand growth due to high interest rates.
The price of Brent crude increased by 75 cents, reaching $85.55 per barrel. Similarly, West Texas Intermediate crude also rose by 80 cents, hitting $82.05 per barrel.
On Tuesday, the contracts for September’s West Texas Intermediate crude will expire, while the more active October contracts increased by 73 cents to reach $81.39 per barrel.
The biggest buyer of oil in the world, China, is currently reducing its stockpiles to unprecedented levels. This is due to the fact that Chinese refineries have decreased their purchases following production cuts by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its partners, which include Russia. Together, they are known as OPEC+. These actions have caused oil prices to rise above $80 per barrel.
