Oil reports weekly decline on fading US Fed rate cut hopes; Brent settled 3% lower at $81/bbl
Also Read: OPEC+ to support Brent at $80/bbl; ONGC/Oil India placed well on dividend pay, valuations Back home, on the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX), crude oil futures due for a March 19 expiry, last settled 0.05 per cent higher at ₹6,356 per bbl, having swung between ₹6,344 and ₹6,498 per bbl during the session, against a previous close of ₹6,353 per barrel. -The Federal Reserve has held its policy rate steady in a 5.25 per cent to 5.5 per cent range since last July. Minutes of its meeting last month show most central bankers were worried about moving too quickly to ease policy.
Some analysts, however, say demand has remained largely healthy despite the impact of high interest rates, including in the United States. -JPMorgan's demand indicators are showing oil demand rising by 1.7 million barrels per day (bpd) month over month through Feb. 21, its analysts said in a note.
"This compares to a 1.6 million bpd increase observed during the prior week, likely benefiting from increased travel demand in China and Europe," the analysts said. -Gaza truce talks were underway in Paris in what appears to be the most serious push in weeks to halt the conflict in Palestine and see Israeli and foreign hostages released. Ceasefire talks could prompt the market to anticipate an easing of geopolitical tensions, Tim Evans, an independent oil market analyst, said in a note.
Still, tensions in the Red Sea continued, with attacks by Iran-backed Houthi militants near Yemen on Thursday forcing more shipping vessels to divert from the trade route. US energy firms this week added the most oil rigs since November, and the most in a month since October 2022, said energy services firm Baker Hughes. Also Read: Fed minutes show officials expressed
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