Weekly Oil Report: Geopolitical Tensions Keep Markets on Edge

On Friday, Brent oil closed at $78.65 and WTI settled around $73.39. Watch crude technical analysis and comment your ideas:

For the 5th consecutive week, Brent struggled with 82 USD per barrel. The strong quarterly pivot point wouldn’t be broken with the current purchasing power unless it has a sudden change in market powers.

While geopolitical tensions are now more highlighted, traders aren’t reacting as before. They are confused about all the events of the market.

The Israel-Hamas war is expanding in the region. Iran hit 3 spots in Iraq, Pakistan, and Syria. In return, Pakistan launched an attack on Iran’s border town. Disputes are heating up in Syria and Gaza too.

More fires in Yemen almost held all the vessels to avoid Suez Canal and Red Sea. Therefore, shocks of freight increases are continuing. There are some possibilities for having container shortages in major ports in the near term.

Although several economic reports showed slight improvement, the overall outlook is not promising. The Chinese New Year is also coming and demand is a bit halted until the end of vacation.

Traders are keeping a close eye on the Middle East Tensions, US productions, economic reports, and demand shifts so they can evaluate the situation better.

The confusion is not limited to oil. Sub-products are also in the same situation, including bitumen. In Europe, bitumen prices stayed unchanged. While in Africa, rates increased because of rising freights. In East Asia, we had a slight decrease due to the coming holidays.

If you need bitumen, contact me for the exact price.