Oil hovers near 3-month highs as tighter supplies, China stimulus pledge lifts sentiment; Brent at $82/bbl

livemint.com:

₹6,445 per bbl, having swung between ₹6,416 and ₹6,475 per bbl during the session so far, against a previous close of ₹6,461 per barrel. The crude benchmarks have already chalked up four weekly gains in a row, with supplies expected to tighten due to output cuts from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and allies. Earlier-loading Brent contracts are selling above later loadings, a price structure known as backwardation indicating traders see tight supply, with the six-month spread near a two-and-a-half month high.

"On the supply side, whilst remote for now, risks are growing following Russia’s escalation and bombing of Ukrainian port infrastructure along the Danube River," ING said in a note saying attacks on grains assets could spill into energy markets. "The market is starting to become a little nervous over a potential supply disruption." In China, the world's second-biggest oil consumer, leaders pledged to step up economic policy support. In the euro zone, business activity shrank more than expected in July, a survey showed.

In the United States, business activity slowed to a five-month low in July, a closely watched survey showed, but falling input prices and slower hiring indicate the Federal Reserve could be making progress on its bid to reduce inflation. Markets anticipate 25-basis-point rate hikes from both the Fed and the European Central Bank this week. U.S.

industry data on inventories is expected at around 2030 GMT. Four analysts polled by Reuters estimated on average that crude inventories fell by about 2 million barrels in the week to July 21. Sending a bearish signal, a 110,000 barrel-per-day unit at the huge U.S.