Oil prices ease from 10-month highs but hold above $90 a barrel - CNBC
Oil prices ease from 10-month highs but hold above $90 a barrel
Oil prices edged lower on Monday after fresh Saudi and Russian crude output cuts had driven prices to 10-month highs last week.
Saudi Arabia and Russia last week announced that they will extend voluntary supply cuts of a combined 1.3 million barrels per day (bpd) until the end of the year.
Brent crude fell 23 cents, or 0.2%, to $90.40 a barrel by 8:07 a.m. ET, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was at $87.05 a barrel, down 46 cents, or 0.5%.
"Concerns about Chinese economic growth weighed on sentiment across commodities," ANZ analysts said in a note.
"The move was exacerbated by a stronger USD, which kept investor appetite low," they added, referring to the greenback which has risen for eight straight weeks.
Both contracts gained in the past two consecutive weeks with Brent settling at its highest since November on Friday, after Saudi Arabia and Russia announced last week they will extend voluntary supply cuts of a combined 1.3 million barrels per day until the end of the year.
The International Energy Agency and the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, or OPEC, are due to release their monthly reports this week.
"Any sign of strong demand from oil market reports from IEA and OPEC will likely push oil prices higher," ANZ analysts said.
In the United States, producers added an oil rig last week for the first time since June, Baker Hughes said in its weekly report, but the total count was still down 127, or 17%, below this time last year.
WTI is likely in the process of marking out a new higher range at above $83 and below resistance at $93.50 in the weeks ahead, with concerns around demand in China and Europe capping further upside, IG analyst Tony Sycamore said in a note.
Related Knowledge Center: ENERGY BASICS: petroleum
While electric-powered vehicles may be the ride of the future, oil remains at least for now the dominant fuel for transportation around the world. And after a period of time at the end of the 20th century when oil was subject to wide fluctuations in price, new supplies in North America as a result of non-conventional recovery techniques have helped stabilize prices.