Oil prices rise in choppy trade

Oil prices edged higher in volatile trade on Friday, bolstered by the prospect of lower Russian exports but pressured by rising inventories in the United States and concerns over global economic activity.

Brent crude futures were up 31 cents, or 0.4%, at $82.75 a barrel by 1723 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) gained 37 cents, or 0.5%, at $75.76. Earlier, both fell by more than $1 a barrel.

Lower trading volumes contributed to volatility, with Brent trading at 46% and WTI trading at 73% of the previous session’s levels.

The benchmarks were poised to log a second straight week of declines, with both heading for a weekly loss of less than 1%.

On the anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, benchmark Brent crude was about 15% lower than a year earlier. It hit a 14-year high of nearly $128 a barrel on March 8, 2022.

Both benchmarks rose about 2% in the previous session on Russia’s plans to cut oil exports from its western ports by up to 25% in March, which exceeded its announced production cuts of 500,000 barrels per day.

But the market appeared to be well supplied with US inventories at their highest since May 2021, according to data from the US EIA.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 25^th, 2023.

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