The price of Texas Intermediate (WTI) oil closed 0.2% higher at $92.10 a barrel, as concerns dissipated that rising tensions in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict could affect oil supplies.
According to data at the end of operations on the New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex), WTI futures contracts for delivery in April added 0.19 dollars compared to the previous close. Benchmark oil in the US rose yesterday after Russian President Vladimir Putin recognized the independence of the self-proclaimed republics of Donetsk and Luhansk, on Ukrainian territory, and sent troops.
In reaction to the dispatch of Russian troops, the United States and the Western powers announced sanctions that did not include any series of measures that could lead to some kind of blockade of the energy industry, beyond Germany’s announcement to stop the Russian Nord Stream gas pipeline project two.
Russia is the second largest oil exporter after Saudi Arabia, but also the largest producer of natural gas. Although many analysts warn that the situation is still very volatile and it is not known with certainty how the conflict may evolve, it seems that the fear of a large-scale invasion has ceased to influence investors’ behavior for the time being.
Likewise, the downward evolution of the price has also been influenced by the possibility that a nuclear agreement with Iran will soon be closed, which could translate into an increase in production.
“The possibility of oil reaching $100 a barrel is still on the table, but the growing prospects that a nuclear deal with Iran could be reached in the coming days could delay that,” said OANDA market analyst Edward Moya, quoted by the Market Watch website.
Meanwhile, natural gas contracts for April delivery added 13 cents to $4,593 per thousand cubic feet, and gasoline contracts due the same month rose 2 cents to $2.87 a gallon.
