Oil prices were down on Monday as vaccine hopes were overshadowed by a worldwide surge in new COVID-19 cases amid fresh lockdowns in the US, Europe and Asia, which raised concerns over the outlook for crude\u00a0demand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
International benchmark Brent crude was trading at $49.09 per barrel at 0641 GMT for a 0.32% decline after closing Friday at $49.25 a barrel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
American benchmark West Texas Intermediate was at $46.06 per barrel at the same time for a 0.43% decrease after it ended the previous session at $46.26 a barrel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Concerns that stiffening coronavirus mitigation measures will reflect negatively on global economies due to increasing cases worldwide is exerting pressure on oil prices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
California in the US, Germany, Iran and South Korea are among the countries that imposed new lockdowns and restrictions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to data from Johns Hopkins University on Monday, the number of cases worldwide has now reached over 67 million. The US, the world’s largest oil-consuming country, still tops the number of cases above 14.7 million, while cases in India now total over 9.6 million, and Brazil follows with over 6.6 million cases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Although oil prices extended gains toward $50 a barrel after OPEC+ reached a deal to incrementally ease production cuts, the decision failed to meet market expectations of extending the current deal for three months, weighing on prices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Moreover, as an indicator of short-term production in the country, the number of US oil rigs increased by 5 to 246 last week compared to the previous week. This signals greater output while raising worries over a supply glut.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, with mounting optimism over COVID-19 vaccines and the return of consumption in Asia, hope is boosted for the clearing of the current supply glut to cap further price declines.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Oil prices were down on Monday as vaccine hopes were overshadowed by a worldwide surge in new COVID-19 cases amid fresh lockdowns in the US, Europe and Asia, which raised concerns over the outlook for crude\u00a0demand. International benchmark Brent crude was trading at $49.09 per […]<\/p>\n
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