SULAIMANI (ESTA) — Oil prices rose for a fourth day on Friday as Russian supply disruption fears trumped COVID-19 lockdowns in China, the world’s biggest crude importer, that are weighing on demand.
Brent crude futures rose 98 cents to $108.6 a barrel by 0858 GMT after gaining 2.1% in the previous session.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude gained 50 cents to $105.9 a barrel after settling 3.3% higher on Thursday.
Both contracts are set to close the week higher and post their fifth straight monthly gains, buoyed by the increased likelihood that Germany will join other European Union member states in an embargo on Russian oil, according to Reuters.
Still, oil prices have been volatile as China has shown no sign of easing lockdown measures despite the impact on its economy and global supply chains.
“With both full and partial lockdowns ramping up since March, China’s economic indicators have plunged further into the red. We now expect China’s GDP to slow further in Q2,” Reuters quoted Wood Mackenzie’s Head of APAC Economics Yanting Zhou as saying.
“Oil market volatility is set to continue, with the potential for more widespread and prolonged lockdowns into May and beyond, skewing the near-term risks for China’s oil demand – and prices – to the downside.”
