Oil prices rose this week, fueled by optimism over China’s economic growth and forecasts of lower US crude inventories. WTI broke back above $70, while Brent traded at $73.72. The EIA is set to report a crude draw in the US, further boosting prices.
However, several other factors are also influencing the oil market. Finland’s coast guard has seized a Russian tanker suspected of causing an outage in an undersea electricity cable connecting Finland and Estonia. China approved the construction of the world’s largest hydropower dam, which aims to produce 300 billion KWh of electricity annually.
Iraq plans to cut gas flaring by 20% next year, amid reports that Donald Trump might sanction Iraq’s imports of Iranian natural gas. The US Export-Import Bank has approved a $526 million loan to Guyana for the construction of a 300 MW natural gas-fired power plant.
Meanwhile, Shell has shut down one of its oil processing units in Singapore after a leak, and Turkey is preparing to start negotiations with Syria to delineate maritime boundaries in the Mediterranean Sea. France launched its first reactor of the 21st century, while India announced plans to invest $11 billion in a new refinery in southern Andhra Pradesh state.
The news comes ahead of Christmas, which has caused some delays in market reporting.
Source: https://oilprice.com/Energy/Energy-General/Oil-Prices-Rise-on-China-Stimulus-and-Falling-US-Inventories.html