Oil prices rose slightly on Wednesday.
A barrel (159 liters) of North Sea Brent for delivery in April cost $71.11. That was 34 cents more than the day before. The price of US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) oil rose 25 cents to $65.89.
Oil prices stabilized near the $70 mark this week. This means that the significant price increases from the previous week were maintained. The conflict between Iran and the United States remains in the eyes of the markets. US President Donald Trump claimed in his State of the Union address that Iran was working to restart its nuclear program. This reinforced expectations that US military intervention could occur. Oil prices have benefited from increased uncertainty since the beginning of the year.
According to US government circles, the United States wants to negotiate with Iran in Geneva this Thursday. If an agreement is reached, Iran could export more oil, which would increase supply on the world market and reduce the price of oil accordingly. However, the conflict could also escalate.
“By far the greatest risk of a US attack on Iran lies in a possible blockage of the sea route through the Strait of Hormuz,” commented Carsten Fritsch, raw materials expert at Commerzbank. “It would be enough if the waterway were no longer safe for oil tankers to pass due to the high risk during the fighting.” A good quarter of seaborne oil shipments are transported through the Strait of Hormuz every day.
According to a report by the Bloomberg news agency, the OPEC+ oil association is apparently planning a moderate expansion of production. She refers to some delegates from the OPEC+ states. The group, led by Saudi Arabia and Russia, has not yet agreed on a course of action for its video conference on Sunday. The procedure for the month of April should be coordinated at the weekend. The oil production cartel gradually expanded production last year and recently took a three-month break.
NEW YORK/LONDON (dpa-AFX)