The price of crude oil on international markets fell once more on Monday morning. Around 9:55 a.m. GMT (10:55 a.m. in Paris) a barrel of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for delivery in April fell 5.06% to 103.80 dollars. The barrel of Brent from the North Sea yielded 4.03% to 108.13 dollars.
Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24, the price of oil has risen sharply. At the beginning of last week, Brent oil even briefly reached USD 139 per barrel, the highest level since 2008. But in recent days the price has been falling. Today, the hope of an agreement between the two countries is reborn, following the positive declarations of last weekend.
Analysts expect oil to get a bit cheaper this week as current prices already factor in less supply from Russia. The focus will be more on monetary policy, they say. The U.S. central bank is expected to announce an interest rate hike this week, which might strengthen the U.S. dollar and therefore have a dampening effect on commodity prices, Archyde.com news agency reports. The progression of the coronavirus in China – the world’s largest importer of crude oil – is also having a moderating effect.
Last week, Brent oil became 4.8% cheaper and WTI oil 5.7% cheaper.
European gas prices drop once more
European gas prices also continued to slide on Monday following reports of talks between Russia and Ukraine over a possible ceasefire. The two belligerents will discuss once more today by videoconference and Russian President Vladimir Putin would be ready to meet his Ukrainian counterpart Zelensky.
The price of gas on the Amsterdam gas exchange, a reference in Europe, fell by 10% to 118 euros per megawatt hour. Last week, gas hit a record price of 345 euros per megawatt hour due to concerns over the war in Ukraine and disruptions in Russian gas supplies to Europe.
Europe is 40% dependent on Russian gas.
Russia’s state-owned Gazprom will continue to transport gas to Europe via pipelines through Ukraine, the company confirmed on Monday. 109.5 million m³ of natural gas should be transported on Monday, as on Sunday, a spokesman told the Russian news agency Interfax.