New York’s West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures ended lower in nearly two weeks on Monday (March 14) as investors hoped for progress in peace talks between Russia. and Ukraine. Oil prices have also been pressured by China’s announcement of a lockdown in Shenzhen to curb the spread of COVID-19. which will affect the demand for oil
- The WTI crude oil contract will be delivered in April. It was down $6.32, or 5.8%, at $103.01 a barrel. This is the lowest closing level since March 1, 2022.
- Brent crude oil contract (BRENT) for delivery in May. It was down $5.77, or 5.1%, at $106.90 a barrel. This is the lowest closing level since Feb. 28, 2022.
Mikhailo Podolyak, adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, has said that the fourth round of peace talks between Ukraine and Russia has yet to be concluded. and both sides will temporarily suspend negotiations The peace talks involve calls for Russia to ceasefire and withdraw all troops from Ukraine.
In addition, the oil market was also pressured by reports that The Chinese government has announced a lockdown of Shenzhen for at least a week, aiming to contain the spread of the coronavirus. The lockdown measures might result in transport and production congestion in Shenzhen. It is the tech hub of China and has a population of regarding 17.5 million people.
China finds new cases of COVID-19 Nearly 3,400 cases were added on Sunday (March 13), which was more than double the previous day, prompting the Chinese government to decide to lockdown in many areas. including Shenzhen, which is an important port city and China’s technology hub. While the city of Jilin announced partial lockdown measures. Yanji, which borders North Korea, has been locked down.
By InfoQuest News Agency (15 Mar 65)