Oil rose in Asian trading this Wednesday morning, supported by the American Petroleum Institute report, which showed a greater than expected decline in stocks.
The American Petroleum Institute’s weekly report, released Tuesday night, showed a decline in crude oil inventories for the week ending August 7, by 4.4 million barrels, which came larger than expectations of 3.2 million barrels.
At 11:47 PM ET (4:47 AM GMT), WTI futures were trading at $ 41.77 a barrel, recording gains of 0.38%. Brent crude futures rose 0.52% to trade at $ 44.73.
Oil prices also found support in Russian President Vladimir Putin’s announcement yesterday, Tuesday, of the Russian vaccine against the Corona virus, Sputnik-V, and the Russian president said that he had obtained the approval of the relevant authorities, and that it was ready for use, despite his experience on humans for a short period of less than two months. . Russian Health Minister Mikhail Murashko said that the vaccine “has proven effective” and that it is “very safe.” Vaccination is scheduled to start in the country in October.
But health authorities and experts in other countries have questioned this vaccine, because it has not yet undergone adequate safety tests, and because Russia has not provided any scientific evidence of the vaccine’s effectiveness and safety.
Markets were also optimistic that the United States was close to approving a new stimulus package. US President Donald Trump said yesterday that he is thinking “seriously” about reducing the capital gains tax and reducing the income tax for middle-income families, which is another matter that contributed to the rise in oil prices.