AlwaysFree: Oil Prices Mixed on Another Storm Threat

On Monday, oil prices mixed as a threat from a tropical storm in the US Gulf of Mexico buoyed US price but gains capped by high supply and falling fuel demand.

At 00.50 GMT, Brent crude oil futures slipped by 3 cents to USD39.8/barrel while the US WTI crude futures climbed by 0.2% or 9 cents to USD37.42/barrel. Last week, both contracts posted a second declining week in a row.

Another storm is threatening the US Gulf of Mexico west of Florida. On Sunday, Tropical Storm Sally gained strength and is predicted to be a category 2 hurricane. The region’s oil production is disrupted for the second time in less than a month after Hurricane Laura.

Previously on Saturday, Chevron Corp. and Murphy Oil Corp. evacuated staff from some offshore platforms in the US Gulf of Mexico, then on Sunday, BP Plc. and Equinor ASA followed suit.

Crude prices are not expected to rise with the production shutdowns, since the coronavirus pandemic has driven demand so low with a lacklustre driving season in the US and global supplies still rising.

Separately in Libya, commander Khalifa Haftar had committed to end the oil facilities blockades, which could add more supplies to the market. However, it was still unclear if the fields and ports would start operations.

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