Brent futures market closed today – here’s a recap of what drove prices this week

The ICE Brent Futures market is closed for trading today on account of Christmas. Front-month ICE Brent closed at $62.24/bbl on Wednesday, which is $0.32/bbl lower than the price at 09.00 GMT on the same day.

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Upward pressure:

Brent futures have found support this week amid growing concerns of potential supply disruptions linked to Venezuela and Russia. Ongoing attacks by Russia and Ukraine on each other’s energy infrastructure have added fresh upward pressure to prices, market analysts said.

In Venezuela, more than a dozen oil tankers already loaded with crude are waiting for new instructions after the US seized the tanker Skipper earlier this month and targeted two more vessels over the weekend, according to Reuters. The situation intensified last week after US President Donald Trump barred all sanctioned vessels from entering or leaving Venezuela, increasing pressure on President Nicolás Maduro to step down.

Additionally, official data from Baker Hughes showed that the total number of active US oil rigs fell by eight over the week to 406. The rig count is widely viewed as a forward indicator of US shale production, reflecting current and expected drilling activity.

Downward pressure:

Oil prices have come under downward pressure following the American Petroleum Institute's (API) weekly oil inventory report.

API data showed that stockpiles rose by 2.4 million bbls in the week ending 19 December. Such inventory builds are typically seen as a signal of weaker demand and often put pressure on oil prices.

Market participants are now waiting for the release of the US Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) oil inventory report on Monday. The report has been delayed this week due to the Christmas holiday.

By Tuhin Roy

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