Conflict in the Middle East spreads, causing oil prices to rise again

Specifically, Brent oil price increased by 1.1 USD, equivalent to 1.42%, to 78.81 USD/barrel, while US WTI oil price increased by 1.45 USD, equivalent to 2.01%, to 73.64 USD.

Israel's defense minister said Israeli forces were planning a more targeted approach in northern Gaza and continuing to pursue Hamas leaders in the south.

Amid the escalating Israel-Hamas conflict, US Secretary of State Blinken is expected to conduct diplomatic activities in the Middle East within a week.

Concerns about supply disruptions in Libya also pushed oil prices higher. Libya’s largest oil field, Sharara, has been shut down due to local protests, while the El-Feel oil field, with a capacity of about 65,000 barrels per day, is also at risk of production disruptions.

Brent crude oil prices are trading at — Brent oil price is trading at 78.81 USD/barrel. Photo: screenshot

Libya is a member of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), producing about 1.2 million barrels per day, equivalent to 1% of global oil demand.

In December 2023, the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) forecast that the market could have a deficit of about 800,000 barrels/day in the first quarter of this year due to the impact of production cuts by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies (OPEC+).

Investors are now watching macroeconomic data to see if rate cuts will help boost economic growth and higher oil demand.

Nonfarm payrolls increased by 216,000 jobs last month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said, with the economy adding 2.7 million jobs in 2023, down sharply from the 4.8 million jobs created in 2022.

The labor market is cooling, but the resilience of the labor market and the strength of wage growth could keep the Fed on hold for longer, said Scott Anderson, chief economist at BMO Capital Markets in San Francisco.

The retail price of gasoline in the country on January 6 is as follows: E5 RON 92 gasoline is not more than VND 21,186/liter; RON 95-III gasoline is not more than VND 22,148/liter; diesel oil is not more than VND 19,788/liter; kerosene is not more than VND 20,457/liter; fuel oil is not more than VND 15,685/kg.

Source