Oil prices close lower on demand concerns

Los oil prices They fell slightly on Thursday, as the wave of Covid-19 in China weighed on demand prospects. Meanwhile, the price of European gas recovered after falling to its lowest level since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

In London the barrel of North Sea Brent for delivery in February it yielded 1.20% closing at 82.26 dollars. Meanwhile, in New York, the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for same-month delivery lost 0.70%, trading at $78.40.

Although prices fell slightly this Thursday at first, they recovered after the publication of weekly data on US oil inventories, which rose by 700,000 barrels during the week ending December 23, when analysts expected a reduction of 1.2 million.

However, the drop in prices is generally attributed to “the wave of post-reopening Covid seen in China” and the restrictions imposed by the United States on travelers from that country, said Derren Nathan, an analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown.

As for the gas natural, the European reference, the Dutch TTF contract for delivery in March, closed at 83.80 euros per megawatt/hour (MWh). The day before, it fell to 76.18 euros, an unprecedented level since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February.

“Given the decline in Russian exports, it looks like Europe has managed to store enough gas to at least get through the winter,” said Michael Rae, an analyst at M&G Investments.

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