Brent climbs above $87 to highest level since April

Brent oil price rose above $87 on Friday, the highest level since April, with data indicating a fall in crude oil stocks in the US, the world’s biggest oil-consuming country, a forecast of a busy travel season during the summer and escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.

International benchmark Brent crude traded at $87.52 per barrel at 10.22 a.m. local time (0722 GMT), up 0.10% from the closing price of $87.43 per barrel in the previous trading session.

The American benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) traded at $84.10 per barrel, a 0.04% rise from the previous session when it closed at $84.06 per barrel.

The Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) official statistics portrayed a 12.2 million barrel decline in commercial crude oil stocks in the US. The market expectation was that stocks would decline by about 400,000 barrels.

The data also showed that US crude oil production declined by 27,000 barrels per day (bpd) to around 13.58 million bpd during the week ending June 28. The decrease in oil production reinforced supply concerns among market participants and helped push oil prices up.

Meanwhile, the expectation that travel will increase in the summer season further supported the idea that demand will continue to rise, lending upward support for prices.

Moreover, geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and the Red Sea, one of the world’s most frequently used sea routes for oil and fuel shipments, continue to impact oil prices.

Yemen’s Houthi group reported three fresh US-British airstrikes late Thursday against its sites in western Al Hudaydah province. Two strikes targeted Al Luhayyah district, the Houthi-run Al-Masirah television reported. In a subsequent report, the channel said another airstrike targeted the Al-Jah area in Bayt al-Faqih district in the province.

Meanwhile, negative economic data in the world’s largest oil consumer limited upward price movement by causing demand concerns among market players.

The latest data showed that private payrolls increased by 150,000 in June, below market expectations and annual wage growth also recorded the slowest increase since August 2021, at 4.9%.

The number of people applying for unemployment benefits for the first time in the US also increased by 4,000 to 238,000 in the week ending June 29 compared to the previous week, exceeding expectations.

• American Benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI)
• Energy Information Administration's (EIA)