Oil kicks off week higher as traders focus on demand factors
BNN Bloomberg
Oil advanced as investors assessed conflicting signals for crude demand after a period of volatile trading.
West Texas Intermediate rose as much as 2.3 per cent on Monday, adding to a four per cent gain on Friday when futures pared a steep weekly loss. Better-than-expected U.S. employment data on Friday eased economic concerns and raised expectations for oil demand in the world’s biggest consuming nation.
Fears of a US recession and bank failures have rattled markets recently, pushing crude to the lowest intraday level since late 2021. However, physical demand signals suggest at least some of the weakness in prices may have been overdone. The amount of crude held around the world on stationary tankers dropped to the lowest since mid-February, Vortexa data show.
“Overall, however, the crude oil market remains exposed to high level of volatility, partly driven by extreme and regular positioning changes as funds struggle to find the right direction,” said Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank A/S.
