EBC Markets Briefing | Oil prices hold onto gains on OPEC+ policy tweak

Oil prices eased slightly on Wednesday in the countdown to US presidential election, after rising more than 2% in the past session as OPEC+ delayed plans to hike production in December and eased supply concerns.

Still Secretary General Haitham Al Ghais said the member states remain very positive on demand in both the short and long term. Leaders in Iran proclaimed the country would retaliate for Israeli missile strikes last month.

OPEC oil output rebounded in October as Libya resumed output, a Reuters survey found. In last month output was at its lowest this year as a further Iraqi effort to adhere to its quote limited the gain.

In the US, a late season tropical storm predicted to intensify into a category 2 hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico this week could reduce oil production by about 4 million barrels, researchers said.

Chinese commodities producers centred on the old economy are still bearing the brunt of the nation’s economic slowdown, with crude oil processors in particular continuing to rack up losses.

Local refiners are cutting runs, with weak demand for fuels exacerbated by the country’s rapid uptake of EVs. September data showed a sixth consecutive monthly drop in processing in the Asian country.

Brent crude found solid support around $70 and was set to test the initial resistance at $76 which is followed 200 SMA – the key level to negate the ongoing downtrend.

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