MARKET WATCH: NYMEX oil prices rally on IEA comments

Crude oil prices rallied by more than $2/bbl on the New York market Jan. 16, which analysts attributed to comments from the International Energy Agency in Paris about a possible oil price rebound later this year along with traders buying in advance of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday on Jan. 19.
Jan. 19, 2015
2 min read

Crude oil prices rallied by more than $2/bbl on the New York market Jan. 16, which analysts attributed to comments from the International Energy Agency in Paris about a possible oil price rebound later this year along with traders buying in advance of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday on Jan. 19.

Commerzbank issued a note saying the long-term direction of the oil market remained uncertain.

“We can expect the huge price fluctuations to say with us for the time being,” Commerzbank said.

IEA said it was seeing signs of a price recovery although it might not be imminent. A rebalancing of the market might “begin to occur” in the second half, IEA said in its Oil Market Report for January.

Energy prices

The NYMEX February crude oil contract gained $2.44 on Jan. 16, closing at $48.69/bbl. The March contract climbed $2.40 to $49.13/bbl.

The natural gas contract for February was down 3¢ to a rounded $3.13/MMbtu. The cash gas price at Henry Hub, La., dropped 20¢ to $3.09/MMbtu on Jan. 16. US gas prices fell after forecasters said below-normal temperatures for much of the US appears to be ending, at least for now.

Heating oil for February was up 4¢ to a rounded $1.66/gal. Reformulated gasoline stock for oxygenate blending for February rose nearly 6¢ to a rounded $1.36/gal.

The March ICE contract for Brent crude oil climbed $1.90 to settle at $50.17/bbl. The April contract gained $1.91 to $51.47/bbl. The ICE gas oil contract for January was down 75¢ to $472.75/tonne.

The average price for OPEC’s basket of 12 benchmark crudes on Jan. 16 was $43.40/bbl, up 26¢ from the previous day.

Contact Paula Dittrick at [email protected].

*Paula Dittrick is editor of OGJ’s Unconventional Oil & Gas Report.

About the Author

Paula Dittrick

Senior Staff Writer

Paula Dittrick has covered oil and gas from Houston for more than 20 years. Starting in May 2007, she developed a health, safety, and environment beat for Oil & Gas Journal. Dittrick is familiar with the industry’s financial aspects. She also monitors issues associated with carbon sequestration and renewable energy.

Dittrick joined OGJ in February 2001. Previously, she worked for Dow Jones and United Press International. She began writing about oil and gas as UPI’s West Texas bureau chief during the 1980s. She earned a Bachelor’s of Science degree in journalism from the University of Nebraska in 1974.

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