Dollar pressure again in oil: How much was Brent oil? (28 September 2022)

The strengthening of the dollar in the middle of the week caused the commodity market, especially oil, to be under pressure again. Brent oil is trading at $83.71 a barrel in international markets.

Oil pulled back against numbers pointing to an increase in US stockpiles and speculation that OPEC+ will cut production. 

The barrel price of Brent oil, which rose to $ 85.74 yesterday, completed the day at $ 84.87. As of 09:14, the price of Brent oil per barrel decreased by 1.36 percent compared to the closing date and became 83.71 dollars. At the same time, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil found buyers at $77.33 a barrel.

The strong dollar and the forecast for the increase in the US oil stocks, which pointed to the decrease in demand, were effective in the decrease in prices.

THE DOLLAR CONTINUES TO RISE

The dollar continues to appreciate against other currencies after the US Federal Reserve (Fed) signals that it will continue its “hawk” monetary policy to combat inflation.

The rise in the dollar index, which measures the value of the US dollar against other currencies, also makes oil more expensive for buyers who use other currencies, putting prices down.

The American Petroleum Institute announced that the country’s crude oil stocks were expected to increase by about 4 million 150 thousand barrels last week compared to the previous week. The market expectation was that inventories would increase by 333 thousand barrels.

HURRICANE STOPPED OIL PRODUCTION

Official oil stock data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration will be released today.

On the other hand, the news flow that the US efforts to restart production in the Gulf of Mexico, which was suspended due to Hurricane Ian, gained momentum, also eased the concerns on the supply side. Producers began returning workers to offshore oil platforms after stopping oil production.

Hurricane Ian, the first hurricane to disrupt oil and gas production this year, had to suspend oil production of around 190,000 barrels per day in the gulf.

It is stated that technically, the range of 83.95 to 84.25 dollars in Brent oil can be followed as a resistance and the range of 83.38 to 83.11 dollars as a support zone.