Oil prices steady near 10-mth high with Fed, central banks in focus

investing.com:

Investing.com-- Oil prices fell slightly in Asian trade on Monday as traders hunkered down in anticipation of several key central bank meetings this week, although the prospect of a tighter market, on more supply cuts, kept prices at 10-month peaks.

Brent oil futures expiring in November saw some mild profit taking after a stellar run of gains, falling 0.3% to $94.03 a barrel by 20:14 ET (00:14 GMT). West Texas Intermediate crude futures traded at $90.22 a barrel after rolling over into the November contract. The WTI contract for September had settled at $90.77 a barrel on Friday.

Both contracts were still sitting close to their highest levels since November 2022, having marked an over 30% over the past three months following supply cuts from Saudi Arabia and Russia. 

The two countries recently said that their 1.3 million barrels per day cuts will extend until the end of the year, presenting a tight outlook for oil markets. 

But oil prices saw some measure of profit taking on Monday. Fears of a U.S. government shutdown also saw traders lock-in some gains, amid disagreements between top-level Republican lawmakers over defense spending. 

U.S. lawmakers have a two-week deadline to vote on a fiscal spending bill, failing which could cause large swathes of the government to stop functioning. 

A two-day Federal Reserve meeting, which begins on Tuesday, is set to headline a series of central bank meetings this week. While the Fed is widely expected to keep interest rates on hold, it is still expected to maintain its hawkish outlook, especially after a recent upswing in inflation.

U.S. interest rates are expected to remain higher for longer, pointing to more pressure on the U.S. economy, which traders fear could stymie its