© Reuters. FILEPHOTO: These storage tanks were seen at Petroineos Ineos, a petrol refinery located in Lavera. This was March 29th, 2022. REUTERS/Benoit TessierBy Stephanie Kelly
(Reuters) – After industry data revealed a decrease in both fuel and oil stockpiles, rising supply concerns led to oil prices climbing at the beginning of Asian trading on Wednesday.
These gains are due to Tuesday’s news that the European Union was working on sanctions against Russia in order to wage war on Ukraine. They will also target Moscow’s oil industry.
Officials say that Ursula von der Leyen (President of European Commission) will likely outline the plans for Wednesday.
By 0001 GMT, futures rose by 90 cents (or 0.9%) to $105.87/barrel WTI crude oil futures rose $1.00 (or 1%) to $103.41/barrel
According to American Petroleum Institute data, U.S. crude oil and fuel stock fell last week. Sources said that crude stocks dropped by 3.5million barrels in the week ending April 29. [API/S]
Phil Flynn of Price Futures, an analyst, stated that “the API report caused people to stop worrying about demand and instead start worrying about supply.”
Data from the U.S. government on stockpiles will be available on Wednesday
The previous session saw prices fall more than 2% due to concerns about demand from China following its prolonged COVID-19 lockdowns.
Beijing has been mass testing residents in an attempt to avoid a similar lockdown to Shanghai’s that occurred over the last month. While some apartments blocks were locked, the capital’s restaurants closed.
