Despite the recent gains on Brent Crude and West Texas Intermediate to $69 and $65 per barrel, respectively, traders are still monitoring two significant factors that could be a catalyst to break the stagnant price range of the two global benchmarks. These factors are likely to be the OPEC+ meeting and the U.S. pressure on Russian oil.
On September 7, the members of OPEC and non-nations members will hold a meeting and decide October’s output. Market consensus expects that the group will maintain the output, but there are many that are concerned about the oversupply issue since in the previous meeting, OPEC+ relaxed the supply curbs to reclaim market share. There is also a trade war that could shrink energy demand.
As for Russian oil, its marketing has been targeted by the U.S. administration that tries to pressure Russia to cease its war effort in the Ukraine. So far, India is being focused since the nation constantly purchases large amounts of Russian oil. The U.S. imposed a 50% import tariff as a punishment in which 25% of the said tariffs were secondary duties for the oil purchase. Nonetheless, India refused to end the transaction, and last Monday, its prime minister, Narendra Modi, also met with Russian President, Vladimir Putin, in the SCO meeting in China, a display that implies defiance to the U.S.
