Oil prices rise marginally

16 Feb 2023 , 08:06 AM

Early Asian trading on Thursday saw an increase in oil prices as the market ignored a significant increase in U.S. crude stockpiles and the International Energy Agency raised its demand forecast.

Brent crude futures had increased by 26 cents to $85.64 per barrel, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures had increased by 34 cents to $78.93.

The Energy Information Administration (EIA) said that U.S. crude oil reserves increased by 16.3 million barrels last week to reach 471.4 million barrels, the largest level since June 2021. A data correction, which analysts claimed had a reduced effect on oil prices, was mostly to blame for the larger-than-expected build.

The International Energy Agency’s (IEA) forecast that oil demand will expand by 2 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2023—an increase of 100,000 bpd from last month’s prediction to a record 101.9 million bpd—helped to underpin prices. China will account for 900,000 bpd of the increase.

After lifting its COVID-19 restrictions, China will account for over half of the increase in global oil demand in 2023, according to the IEA.

Oil was also supported by the U.S. dollar, which often moves in the opposite direction of crude prices.

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