SULAIMANI (ESTA) — Oil prices rose on Monday, as worries over a possible recession offset an outlook for higher fuel demand with the upcoming U.S. driving season.
Brent crude futures were up 66 cents to $113.2 a barrel by 1438 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was up 28 cents at $110.6.
“There are black clouds gathering around the financial markets here and it has started to impact crude oil,” Reuters quoted Bob Yawger, director of energy futures at Mizuho, as saying.
“The economic wellbeing of the global economy is questionable at this point,” he said.
Multiple threats to the global economy topped the worries of the world’s well-heeled at the annual Davos economic summit on Monday, with some flagging the risk of a worldwide recession.
International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said she did not expect a recession for major economies but also could not rule one out, according to Reuters.
