Light, sweet crude oil prices gained for a third consecutive trading session on the New York market Feb. 14, settling above $54/bbl. Meanwhile, the gap between Brent and US futures widened with Brent settling at about a $10/bbl premium above light, sweet crude.
Analysts said oil prices also climbed this week because of expectations that US President Donald Trump would extend a March deadline for implementing additional US tariffs on Chinese goods. Trade talks are continuing.
Trump called a 90-day truce in the trade battle with China during a December 2018 meeting with President Xi Jinping in Buenos Aires. That truce delayed plans to increase tariffs on $200 billion of Chinese goods to 25% from 10% until Mar. 2.
Hudson Institute China scholar Michael Pillsbury, who consults with the White House, told the Wall Street Journal that Chinese officials anticipate a US-China deal will be negotiated.
“My Chinese sources seem remarkably confident that without any concessions, the Trump administration will drop its tariffs or grant them an extension of many more months” to continue talks, Pillsbury told the WSJ.
Energy prices
The March contract for light, sweet crude oil on the New York Mercantile Exchange gained 51¢ to settle at $54.41/bbl on Feb. 14. The contract for April delivery climbed 48¢ to settle at $54.79/bbl.
NYMEX natural gas for March dropped a fraction of 1¢ to $2.57/MMbtu on Feb. 14.
Ultralow-sulfur diesel for March gained 3¢ to a rounded $1.97/gal. The NYMEX reformulated gasoline blendstock for March increased 4¢ to a rounded $1.51/gal.
Brent crude for April delivery gained 96¢ to settle at $64.57/bbl while the May contract increased 94¢ to settle at $64.52/bbl. The gas oil contract for March gained $2.75 to $597.25/tonne on Feb. 14.
The average price for the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries’ basket of crudes was $64.28/bbl on Feb. 14, up $1.34.
Contact Paula Dittrick at [email protected].
