SULAIMANI (ESTA) — Oil prices rose on Tuesday after slumping around 7% in the previous session amid a broader market retreat led by concerns about rising coronavirus infections.
Brent crude gained 46 cents to $69.08 a barrel by 0630 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) was up around 10 cents at $66.52 per barrel.
The selloff, which pushes prices to their lowest in two months, “was largely due to concerns centered on the Delta variant and macro backdrop rather than a significant re-think of forward looking oil fundamentals,” RBC Capital Markets told Reuters.
It came after OPEC+, a group including OPEC, Russia and their allies, reached a compromise on Sunday to increase output, but that was more “an unfortunate coincidence rather than a catalyst,” RBC said.
The Delta variant of COVID-19, which is significantly more contagious than earlier ones, is now the dominant strain worldwide, according to U.S. officials.
It has been detected in around 100 countries around the world and patchy rollouts of inoculation program in many places are undermining the battle against the virus.
